AN OXFORDSHIRE woman was left speechless by her MP’s ‘rude’ reply to an email she sent him about a controversial police bill, in which he accused her of supporting fascism.

Francesca Trotman, who is the founder of a charity, says she found the response from Conservative MP for Henley John Howell about the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill 2021 ‘upsetting’.

In her email to him, the 27-year-old urged him to reconsider voting in favour of this Bill, which would beef up police powers and put a stop to ‘disruptive’ protests.

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His final email to Ms Trotman said: “So, all you want is an unfettered right to protest for your own cause and to hell with those who want to get on with their own lives.

“That is not democracy, that is fascism.”

Ms Trotman commented: “Accusing someone of fascism is not the professional response I would expect from any MP.

Francesca Trotman

Francesca Trotman

“It is a really irresponsible thing to do and I am very upset about it.

“I am a big believer in equality for all, so I took a few hours to write up an informative email to Mr Howell, only to receive this.

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“I am really not impressed.”

However, the Tory MP said he would not take being accused of being ‘drunk’ by a member of his constituency.

Mr Howell commented on the allegations made by Ms Trotman and the discussion he had with her about the bill: “The issue that I have raised is as follows – many examples have been given to me by what fascism is about and one of those is one group doing what it wants against the will of the many, and that is precisely what these people are doing.

Henley MP John Howell

Henley MP John Howell

“They are inconveniencing in a big way the activities of other people and that is fascism as far as I am concerned.

“I acted completely professionally and completely responsibly, and people are not going to get away with sending me a whole lot of rubbish about protesting, which is what she has done.

“She is not trying to get me to see her point, she is trying to make a point to me and by doing that to you, that goes against everything I believe in.

“I believe in free speech, I believe in the right to protest but it must not be in the inconvenience of the general population.”

Only days later, another resident of Mr Howell's South Oxfordshire constituency also complained about a ‘rude and patronising’ email response from him over an enquiry about Covid-19 vaccines to frontline workers who suffer from asthma.

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Ellie Hollindale, 49, a teacher who has the condition and is concerned that people like her are being forgotten in the NHS vaccination programme, contacted Mr Howell for help.

However, after a couple of exchanges over email, the he told her that she ‘does not want an MP, but a magician’.

Ms Hollindale commented: “I was very disappointed by his response and the fact that he did not read my emails to him.

“For some reason, he believes he can speak to his constituents like this, it is outrageous.

“I was very taken back by it.”

The Oxford Mail contacted Mr Howell on several occasions for a comment on this allegation, but without response.