Voter ‘beaten’ by MP Mike Amesbury had row over ‘winter fuel surcharge and bridge closure’

A voter was allegedly knocked to the ground by Labour MP Mike Amesbury following a row over cuts to the winter fuel surcharge and the closure of a local bridge

The Runcorn and Helsbury MP was suspended by the Labor Party after footage obtained by MailOnline He appeared to knock a man to the ground during an early morning row in Frodsham on Saturday.

The voter was identified as local Paul Fellows from Cheshire, 42, with reports suggesting a “heated” discussion had taken place before the incident over the closure of a local bridge and winter fuel surcharge cuts.

Mr Amesbury has said he felt “threatened” and that he would “cooperate with any investigation”, including any police investigation.

A witness told The Times newspaper that there had been a ‘heated’ argument, but claimed there was no physical provocation.

“He’s trying to get out now,” the witness claimed.

“My sister tried to intervene and pull him away. You saw the video of how drunk he was. She was waiting for a taxi and so was the man.”

The images were called ‘shocking’ by Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer earlier on Monday while defending the party’s decision to suspend him.

The Prime Minister said the party had responded “very quickly” after the images emerged.

The images captured two men standing opposite each other, in front of the man claiming to be Mr. Amesbury punched the other and continued to slam him to the ground as others shouted, “stop it!”

What happened in the preceding moments is not clear from the video.

Separate footage posted on social media on Saturday appeared to show the MP shouting and pointing his finger at a man lying in the street.

“You’ll never threaten me again, will you?” You’ll never threaten me again, will you?’ he seemed to say.

Sir Keir dodged whether Mr Amesbury should resign as MP, previously saying: ‘I have seen the video footage, it is shocking.

“We took very swift action to suspend him as a member and as an MP.

“A police investigation is now underway and you will understand that, given the circumstances, I cannot say much more about it.”

Cheshire Police confirmed that a 55-year-old man had been voluntarily interviewed under caution in connection with the incident after officers were called to reports of an assault in Frodsham at 2.48am on Saturday.

“He has now been released pending further investigation,” police said.

Mr Amesbury said on Saturday that he “will cooperate with any queries” but that he was “committed to remaining an open and accessible MP for our community” after the first images circulated online.

He said in a statement: “Last night I was involved in an incident that occurred after I felt threatened in the street after a night out with friends.

‘This morning I personally contacted Cheshire Police to report what happened during the incident.

“I will make no further public comment but will of course co-operate with any investigations if required by Cheshire Police.”

A Labor spokesperson said: “Mike Amesbury MP has been assisting Cheshire Police with their investigation following an incident on Friday evening.

“As these investigations are now ongoing, the Labor Party has administratively suspended Mr. Amesbury’s membership of the Labor Party pending an investigation.”

Mr Amesbury was part of Labour’s shadow ministerial team from 2018 to 2024, but failed to secure a frontbench role after the election.