The Labour MP who punched a constituent in the early hours of Saturday morning has been urged to resign, as it was reported that the pair rowed over the closure of a local bridge.
Mike Amesbury was suspended from the party over the weekend and has had the whip withdrawn after videos emerged of the altercation in Frodsham, in his constituency in Cheshire.
The two men had been rowing about the temporary closure of Sutton Weaver swing bridge that connects Frodsham with the village of Sutton Weaver and is due for substantial repair works, a witness told the Times.
The bridge was due to be closed for a month between January and February, leading to a 20-mile detour for some local people, which Amesbury had previously called “unacceptable”. Though the planned closure is on hold and is scheduled to be moved to the half-term holidays to limit disruption, it remains extremely contentious locally.
A Labour source said the row also involved controversial cuts to the winter fuel payment.
CCTV footage appears to show the Runcorn and Helsby MP speaking with a man and then throwing a punch that sends the man staggering backwards and on to the ground. Amesbury appears to throw several more punches while the man is lying in the street, and moments later in a separate video he can be seen to shout: “You won’t threaten the MP ever again, will you?”
Both Amesbury and the victim reported the incident to the police, and Amesbury issued a statement on his Facebook page on Sunday.
He wrote: “Last night I was involved in an incident that took place after I felt threatened following an evening out with friends. This morning I contacted Cheshire police myself to report what happened. I will not be making any further public comment but will of course cooperate with any inquiries if required by Cheshire police.”
Cheshire police said a 55-year-old man had been voluntarily interviewed under caution in relation to the incident, which happened at 2.15am on Saturday, and had been released pending further inquiries.
Keir Starmer called the video “shocking” and said the party had “moved very swiftly” to respond. He said: “There is now a police investigation and in the circumstances you’ll appreciate there’s not much more I can say about that.”
Amesbury, who can sit as an independent, is facing calls from outside and within his party to resign.
The former Labour adviser Matthew Torbitt told GB News: “I know Mike quite well and when I heard the news on Saturday morning I was devastated to be honest with you, because I cannot put into words how out of character this is.
“He’s gentle, he’s very kind, he’s very laid back. I spoke to him over the weekend. I won’t divulge private conversations. From what I can gather from other people, there was a sustained wind-up, a personal attack that evening by said individual in the videos.
“He’s probably ruined his life in one semi-drunken decision.”
Tobitt said: “My advice, unless it was to ensure he can get as much money out of it for his family as possible, was to resign this morning, not let it drag on.”
Sources said the incident was not related to a man who was found guilty of stalking and harassing Amesbury at his constituency office and in town in July 2023.