An SNP MP has revealed that three different men have been prosecuted in court for their threatening behaviour towards her.
Kirsty Blackman spoke out about the abuse aimed at her amid the debate on security for MPs following the killing of Sir David Amess on Friday.
Blackman said, "It is not safe being an MP'" and that being an MP should not attract "hatred, anger and threats".
The Aberdeen North MP, who was deputy leader of the SNP Westminster group, said she has also reported others to the police who have not been prosecuted.
Her revelations come after SNP MP Joanna Cherry, a bitter rival of Blackman, detailed in the Daily Record how she had considered giving up politics due to the abuse she has suffered.
In the past Cherry has accused Blackman of endorsing online abuse by retweeting threatening comments about her feminist stance on transgender rights.
Writing on Twitter on Tuesday, Blackman opened up about the abuse she has suffered herself.
She said: “During my time as an MP, three different men have been in court as a result of their separate threatening behaviour toward me.
“All three were convicted. These are the ones that have made it to court - I have also made a number of police reports that have not met the threshold.”
The MP said she has not spoken about the incidents before as she did not want her children to be alarmed.
She said one of the men sent her a threatening letter, another was “verbally abusive” and the third “travelled from the south of England to Aberdeen where he was intercepted by police.”
She continued: “Being an MP attracts hatred, anger and threats. This should not be the case. It’s not safe to be an MP, but it is important that people are represented, and that they can speak to their representatives. It’s a tough balance to strike.”
She added: “I don’t know how to fix this, other than continued legal action against the perpetrators. I imagine all MPs continually review their security arrangements. I certainly do.”
“I don’t talk about this. I’ve said previously that the very last thing I want is for my children to go to school and catch sight of a newspaper reporting on threats to their mum, or to have other parents or teachers mention it."
MPs from all sides have been opening up about threats they have received following the stabbing of Sir David Amess on Friday lunchtime.
A 25-year-old man, understood to be Ali Harbi Ali, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of Sir David's murder and remains in police custody.
He has been detained under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000 and detectives are expected to continue to question him until Friday after a warrant of further detention was granted.
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