Labour MP Jess Phillips left ‘jumpy and worried’ after receiving death threats
LABOUR MP Jess Phillips has been left feeling “jumpy and worried and frightened” after receiving death threats.
And her constituency office has been closed after a man allegedly kicked the door, tried to smash windows and called her a “fascist”.
The Birmingham Yardley MP said unrelated threats, made in an email, were aimed at “you and your Remain friends”.
She revealed the contents of the email to police. It said: “Unless you change your attitude, be afraid, be very afraid.
“Wherever you are, keep looking over your shoulder. The person standing behind you may not be friendly. You and your Remain friends have been warned.”
Since Thursday afternoon’s incident, Michael Roby, 36, of Birmingham, has been charged with a public order offence.
He has been bailed to appear before the city’s JPs on October 10.
After the incident, Ms Phillips said: “The rational part of my brain says that I’m probably okay, but yeah, I feel jumpy and worried and frightened.”
Asked if she has had death threats she said, “Yeah, lots. There’s at least ten people threatening me in some way or another. Death or violence of some sort.”
The MP said she was “not going to leap to blame Boris Johnson” but added “we all need to be better” and the PM needed to “choose instead of trying to divide… to lead”.
She has also tweeted the contents of an anonymous letter sent to her constituency office.
It read: “It was rather prophetic that Boris Johnson should say ‘I would rather be found dead in a ditch’.
“That is what will happen to those who do not deliver Brexit.”
It came as PM Mr Johnson came under scrutiny for his use of “inflammatory” language. Ms Phillips said his choice of words had been designed to “inflame hatred and division”.
She said: “If he doesn’t change his strategy, I absolutely will.”
Ms Phillips also called on Boris Johnson to apologise for comments he made about murdered MP Jo Cox during angry clashes in the House of Commons last night.
Ms Philips also told the chamber how she received regular death threats from members of the public.
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The PM was repeatedly challenged over his use of the word “surrender” to describe the bill passed by MPs to block Brexit earlier this month.
Ms Phillips called on the PM to meet with her and Mrs Cox’s loved ones to see the hurt his words had caused.
Addressing the house she said: “I want to ask the PM to tell him that the bravest, strongest thing to say is ‘sorry’ it will make him look good, it will not upset the people want Brexit in this country if he acts for once like a statesmen.“
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