BOLTON MPs have been offered private security guards during their surgeries following the fatal stabbing of Sir David Amess.

The 69-year-old MP for Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, was killed at Belfairs Methodist Church during his constituency surgery on Friday.

This has led to fresh concerns about the safety of MPs.

Yasmin Qureshi, MP for Bolton South East, said: “I am still running my drop-in advice surgeries and will continue to meet people from my consistency.

“I also plan to keep meeting constituents face-to-face via appointment.

“I hold surgeries in both Bolton town hall and Farnworth town hall.

“Parliament have offered MPs the chance to have private security guards present during surgeries and I will be getting a security guard for Farnworth.

“I’m not sure if this extra security measure was available to MPs before the incident, but it is well-known now.

“I received threatening messages from Tyrone Gallagher a few years ago, but generally I don’t worry about my safety.”

Gallagher was jailed for 56 days after being convicted of waging an abusive online campaign against the MP in 2019.

Chris Green, MP for Bolton West and Atherton, is also reluctant to change the way he interacts with his constituents following Sir David’s death.

He said: “We know that the killing of Sir David was an act of terrorism and that police investigations are ongoing.

“Personally, I am not taking any further actions.

“I think that there is enough distance already between MPs and the electorate.

“I think having private security guards would be wrong, but MPs need to judge their own particular circumstances.

“I don’t deserve better protection than other people working on the front line, for instance people working in an off-license at night.”

Mark Logan, MP for Bolton North East, said: “As a new MP, I will always remember Sir David giving up his time to listen to my maiden speech, and then offering tonnes of advice afterwards behind the Speaker’s Chair

“We need to move forward to discussing, collaborating, politely disagreeing in online debates.

“It is simply not ok for my team to be exposed to virulent abuse.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel told the Commons that a review of policing for politicians is “concluding literally in the next few days”.

Counter-terrorism officers are quizzing a 25-year-old who is in custody after being arrested on suspicion of murder.