Suspended Labour MP Mike Amesbury has been sentenced to 10 weeks in jail for assaulting a man in the street, after a confrontation over a local infrastructure issue turned violent.

The Runcorn and Helsby MP, pleaded guilty in January to assault by beating of 45-year-old Paul Fellows in Frodsham, Cheshire, in the early hours of 26 October.

CCTV footage captured Amesbury, who has served as an MP since 2017, punching Mr. Fellows to the ground at a taxi rank after a heated exchange about the closure of the Sutton Weaver swing bridge.

Additional video showed Amesbury striking Mr Fellows at least five more times while he was on the floor, as bystanders rushed to intervene.

According to local reports, sentencing him on Monday, Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram said: “In this case, an immediate custodial sentence is, in my judgment, necessary as a punishment and a deterrent.”

Amesbury is expected to serve 40 per cent of his 10-week sentence behind bars.

The court heard that after the assault, Amesbury was restrained by others and was heard telling Mr Fellows: “You won’t threaten your MP again, will you?”