Police investigating rising levels of abuse aimed at region's politicians
Politicians say that abuse directed at them is getting "out of hand" – with some receiving threats of violence on a regular basis.
Police are currently investigating a number of cases involving threats against West Midlands MPs, their families and staff, while one case of vandalism against a constituency office went before the courts last week.
Over the past six months Wolverhampton South West MP Mr Anderson has received death threats, his office has been attacked on several occasions and his family and staff have been threatened.
He said "no one should be made to experience such abuse", and added: "I don't mind anyone having a go at how I vote, but when your staff and family are being threatened it is different.
"I will not be intimidated, and I will continue to serve the great people of Wolverhampton."
It comes after a man from Wolverhampton was given a one week prison sentence suspended for two years, ordered to pay £400 compensation and complete a rehabilitation order, after admitting causing criminal damage to the office of Mr Anderson MP in July.
This was not connected to the threats or the other incidents.
Politicians are facing rising levels of abuse, with four MPs who stood down ahead of last year's general election citing it as one of the main reasons behind their decision to quit.
Lord Austin, the former Dudley North MP, said he feared abuse had become normalised for MPs.
"Things are really getting out of hand," he said. "I get the most disgusting abuse every day on social media but you just have to get used to that.
"I always wanted to be available and accessible to people in Dudley but I had people threatening to attack me, threatening violence at my office, disrupting advice surgeries where I was trying to help local people and even on one occasion surrounding my car with placards when my family were inside. How can that be acceptable?"
MPs say abuse against them has escalated in recent months.
Some have been targeted by anti-lockdown protesters, while Tories across the region have accused Labour of stirring up trouble over the vote to block free school meals during holidays.
Birmingham Northfield MP Gary Sambrooks was called "scum" and abused over his weight after the vote. He said: "Apparently if you disagree that vouchers is the only way to solve poverty this is what happens.
"Some on the left always try to bully their way through politics and caricature the right as evil (or scum) for merely disagreeing.
"I’m afraid that sort of politics just doesn’t work."
Shaun Bailey, the Conservative MP for West Bromwich West, said his mother was verbally abused over the phone after Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner called another Tory MP "scum" in the Commons.
He said that the language was "abhorrent" and added that his staff had also been abused.
Wolverhampton North East MP Jane Stevenson was subjected to abuse earlier this year when Paul Sweet, a Labour councillor in the city told her to "f*** off b***h" in a tweet.
She said the shocking levels of abuse were putting people off from entering politics, particularly women.
"The temperature in politics needs dialling down and we need to focus on finding solutions not hurling abuse," Ms Stevenson said.
"Elements on the left have always thrived on dehumanising Tories and making abuse acceptable, and it has got worse in recent years.
"We know abuse puts people off getting involved in politics at all, especially women.
"I've spoken to so many brilliant people who say abuse is the reason they won't stand to be a councillor or MP. This results in more detached, less diverse politicians, which is bad for everyone.
"There are consequences to this sort of shouty political campaigning - several people now face criminal charges for making threats to local MPs and their staff.
"I've been working for months with the Children's Minister and other colleagues on how we end holiday hunger, and level up opportunity for children in places like Wolverhampton.
"These are issues all MPs want to solve and they need serious discussion not political stunts.
"There is some really valuable cross-party work in Westminster and it's shame that gets lots behind the noise."
Pat McFadden, the Labour MP for Wolverhampton South East, said there had been a growth in abuse of MPs over the past decade.
He said: "I think social media has a lot to do with it because it has given people direct access to send abusive messages with very little effort.
"And of course social media allows people to find their own truth and block out facts they may not like.
"That said, the vast majority of people are still polite and just want help or advice. We always try to do our best for people.
"I’ve not had anything personally abusive this year, though we’ve had some fairly strident emails from people opposing lockdown measures. I had some abusive messages last year when Brexit was top of the agenda but that has died down this year.
"MPs of course have to justify the stance they take or the votes they cast in Parliament and the accountability for that should be exercised at the ballot box.
"The flip side of abuse of politicians has also been a growth in the cult of personality where some followers of some politicians think they can do no wrong.
"President Trump said something along the lines that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and his followers wouldn’t care.
"That kind of blind allegiance isn’t healthy. We have to learn how to exercise judgement without believing everyone who doesn’t share that judgement is somehow not a good person."
David Jamieson, the Labour Police and Crime Commissioner for the West Midlands, said the force would not tolerate abuse and threats against politicians.
"I was first elected to public office 50 years ago and the abuse that elected politicians receive has grown considerably over that time," he said.
"Social media has clearly played a role. Whatever people’s views and disagreements - abuse and threats are never acceptable and quite frankly won’t be tolerated.
"Representing the public doesn’t mean that someone should have to put up with violent threats to themselves or their family.
"This is an issue that the police take seriously as it’s important to protecting the democratic traditions that we all have a stake in."
Last year Kim Leadbeater, the sister of murdered MP Jo Cox, told the Home Affairs Select Committee that the toxic culture of hatred in public life had got worse since her death.
Ms Cox was Labour MP for Batley and Spen and a Remain campaigner, who was killed by a man with far-right sympathies in 2016.
