Sky News confronts trolls who targeted Tory MP Anna Soubry over Brexit

Online trolls who sent abusive emails to Tory MP Anna Soubry and her fellow Brexit rebels have been confronted by Sky News.

Ms Soubry has submitted a 35-page dossier of threats of violence made against her to House of Commons Speaker John Bercow.

The document includes emails and Twitter posts, many of which call for the Broxtowe MP to be hanged for treason.

It comes after Ms Soubry and 10 other Tory backbenchers supported an amendment to key Brexit legislation demanding a "meaningful vote" for Parliament on the UK's divorce deal.

Sky News contacted one man from Kent, who suggested Ms Soubry and others should be hanged.

He was initially unrepentant when challenged about his threatening language.

"I don't care what you think, I want them gone... we should never have done away with hanging," he said.

When pressed on whether he really thought these politicians deserve the death penalty, the man conceded: "To say they should be hanged, it's a debatable point and maybe I regret [writing] that."

Next, Sky News contacted a woman from Warwickshire, who told Ms Soubry: "I hope you do spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder in fear, it's the least you deserve."

Challenged about whether she really wanted this, the woman said: "Well yes - I don't see why not."

But later, she added: "You're twisting it."

Ms Soubry believes several of the threatening tweets and emails were "triggered" by newspaper articles and front pages.

This includes the Daily Mail last week, picturing Tory rebels above the headline, "Proud Of Yourselves?".

In November, a Daily Telegraph front page dubbed Ms Soubry and some of her fellow Conservative MPs "The Brexit Mutineers".

Watching Sky News' confrontations with those who contacted her online, Ms Soubry said: "Actually, I'm quite heartened, because when you spoke to them, it was quite obvious it was the keyboard warrior and it has been whipped up, in particular, by two newspapers.

"One of the gentlemen [what he said] was a direct reference to an online article in the Daily Mail."

The Conservative MP added: "The Mail has a long history of being deeply offensive."

Ms Soubry expressed regret that Theresa May had not publicly challenged the Daily Mail's front page last week.

"The Prime Minister should have said: 'I defend the right for them to say it, but they were wrong to say it'," she said.

The former business minister also admitted she was worried about the threats and, as a result, had stopped giving her constituents advance notice about certain events she would be attending.

The Government has confirmed it will look at proposals to create new legislation to protect people in public life.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said ministers were not yet convinced that tougher laws were needed, but they would consider recent recommendations from the Committee on Standards in Public Life.

Sky News has asked the Daily Mail for a comment but has not yet received a response. However, in the furore that followed the Commons vote, a spokesperson for the paper described accusations that it had bullied MPs as "preposterous".