Tory MP who voted for second referendum says he's lost four inches off his waistline due to Brexit stress

A Tory MP who voted for a second referendum has said that the stresses of Brexit have taken its toll on his weight.

Huw Merriman, who represents Bexhill and Battle and is the parliamentary private secretary to Philip Hammond, also cited “abuse” from his constituents as one of the causes of losing four inches from his waistline.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I’ve lost a lot of weight. I’ve gone from over a 34 to almost under a 30 now, and that’s purely down to what’s going on.”

Mr Merriman, who backed a confirmatory referendum on the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal in indicative votes on Monday night, said he was getting abuse for the way he voted.

He said: ”I’m betraying Brexit, I’m the Chancellor’s tea-lady according to Leave.EU who are trying to get me deselected.

“And you try your best for your constituents… and then you get this vile abuse.

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“And someone off the back of the tea-lady shout was talking about (how) those involved in treason used to be taken outside and lined up and shot, now they’re just paid vast salaries… So it does have an impact on us.”

Mr Merriman said he had started seeing a counsellor because he realised he needed to get “proper control in my life”.

He added: ”If I can recognise it and try and do something about it, then hopefully other people listening can do so where they think ‘oh no I’m just a pull-yourself-together merchant’ because that’s always how I’ve been.

“So I’ve decided that I need to make sure that I’m properly looked after and that we look after our mental health.”