Ann Widdecombe adopted a tough, no-nonsense attitude to her own safety during her political career, telling how she would even ‘bin’ death threats from the IRA.

The former Tory minister, known for opposing abortion and gay rights, was a regular target for left-wing campaigners and activists, who disagreed with her forthright, socially conservative views.

But the 78-year-old Brexiteer and devout Catholic refused to be cowed by terrorists - even after the murder of fellow MP and ‘best friend in Parliament,’ Sir David Amess.

Asked in an interview last October whether she ever feared being physically attacked because of her beliefs and high profile, Ms Widdecombe said defiantly: ‘No.’

‘I took a very robust attitude,’ she said. 'In my day, it was the IRA and I suppose I had a slightly faithless attitude.

‘I remember I used to get death threats from time to time. We all did, and my staff would say, “Shall we tell the police?”

‘I’d say, “Put it in the bin,” because if the IRA are going to do it, they’re not going to tell you in advance, they’re just going to do it. As they did with Airey Neave [assassinated in a 1979 car bomb].

‘I still take that attitude. I do know that we’re in a slightly different world but I think it’s crucial that MPs and their constituents intermingle freely.’

She said Sir David, 69, who was stabbed to death by Islamic State fanatic Ali Harbi Ali while holding a constituency surgery in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, in October 2021, agreed with her.

‘I knew him terribly well, and his family, of course,’ she added. ‘I know, and I said this to his widow, who agreed with me, that he would never want his death used as a reason to distance MPs from their constituents.

‘His belief, and it is still my belief, that an MP should be able to walk through the town on a Saturday afternoon, talk to their constituents.

‘I feel very strongly about that.’

Ms Widdecombe was known for opposing the legality of abortion, issues surrounding LGBT+ rights and for supporting the reintroduction of the death penalty.

Her ‘Passion for Life’ tour, in 2008, during which she spoke against amendments to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, which reduced barriers for same-sex couples to be recognised on a birth certificate, saw her regularly heckled by protestors who staged demonstrations against her pro-life views.

During her political career, she did not once vote in favour of gay rights - opposing significant acts of legislation like civil partnerships, repealing Section 28, the Equality Act, reducing the age of consent for homosexual sex, and gay couples adopting.

In April 2018 she also attacked Prince Harry and his wife Meghan for saying they want to prioritise LGBT+ rights.

The one-time Strictly contestant was never physically attacked for her beliefs, although in April 2000, while shadow home secretary, she was hit in the face with a custard pie during a book signing.

The pie-ing, by a protestor opposed to the Conservatives’ hard line on immigration, however, left her unfazed.

After wiping the custard off her face in a toilet, Ms Widdecombe carried on with the event, saying: ‘This demonstration was a mindless waste of police time carried out by people who clearly have no respect for free speech.’