Yorkshire-born MP Heidi Allen reveals she was sent email about 'killing a baby' and is standing down

Liberal Democrat MP Heidi Allen, who has announced she will not stand in the general election, said she was sent a "particularly nasty" email last week.
Liberal Democrat MP Heidi Allen who has said she will not stand in the next General Election, adding that she is "exhausted by the invasion into my privacy and the nastiness and intimidation that has become commonplace".Liberal Democrat MP Heidi Allen who has said she will not stand in the next General Election, adding that she is "exhausted by the invasion into my privacy and the nastiness and intimidation that has become commonplace".
Liberal Democrat MP Heidi Allen who has said she will not stand in the next General Election, adding that she is "exhausted by the invasion into my privacy and the nastiness and intimidation that has become commonplace".

The former Tory, who gave an emotional speech in the House of Commons last year about her "incredibly hard decision" to have a termination, said the email was about her "killing a baby".

Ms Allen, who grew up in Notton, near Wakefield, said she was "exhausted by the invasion into my privacy and the nastiness and intimidation that has become commonplace" when announcing her decision not to re-stand in her constituency of South Cambridgeshire.

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She told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: "I had a particularly nasty email last week. And I thought - do you know what, nobody in their working place should have to put up with this."

Asked about the content of the email, she said: "It was about me killing a baby because I'd had an abortion."

She added: "You are attacked on a daily basis, on email, on social media, people shout at you in the street, it's become absolutely vile."

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In 2018, Ms Allen spoke of how she was ill when she made the decision to have an abortion, during a debate on reforming the law in Northern Ireland.

In a letter to her constituents on Tuesday, committed Remainer Ms Allen said Brexit has "broken our politics", adding: "I became an MP because I wanted to make a difference, but while Brexit continues to captivate Parliament, that just hasn't been possible."

Ms Allen originally quit the Conservative Party in February, along with Sarah Wollaston and Anna Soubry, to join the new Independent Group, later renamed Change UK, formed by ex-Labour MPs.

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The following month it was announced that she had been appointed interim leader but she left three months later amid reports of disagreements over strategy.

Her South Cambridgeshire constituency is traditionally a safe Conservative seat which she held with a majority of almost 16,000 at the 2017 general election.