A new MP who has served her community for 13 years as a councilor says she has faced “extreme” hate online since winning a seat in Parliament.

Satvir Kaur, former leader of Southampton City Council, has been in public office since 2011.

In July’s general election she won the test seat of Southampton, but Ms Kaur says she feels she has since “attracted all the misogynists, racists and haters” online.

She was speaking to BBC Radio Solent as part of the Hot Seat feature.

Host Louisa Hannan asked the Labor MP: “We know, unfortunately, women in politics are very abused. Is it something you’ve come across? I mean, I know it’s early days.”

Ms Kaur responded by saying it was “extreme” and the racist abuse was “constant, almost daily”.

“It’s more than I thought. I mean, you always get it when you’re in the public eye,” she said.

“Being a politician, you suddenly become somehow sub-human – when all you’re really trying to do is make a positive difference in people’s lives.

“To some extent I understood when I was a councilor and council leader, but I feel like since I became an MP – especially online – I feel like I’ve attracted all the misogynists and all the racists and all the haters out there.” .

But Ms Kaur said the hate actually “emboldens” her, adding: “I want other people from deprived areas and brown girls to feel that if I can do it, they can.”

She added that she has a zero tolerance policy on her social media accounts where if someone is abusive or makes personal comments, they are immediately blocked.

She explained: “Sometimes I bite, but I really try to make an effort not to respond and ignore him because I don’t want to give him airtime.

“I don’t want to spread hate, there’s enough hate out there. I talk to people on their doorstep and one of the things they’re really worried about is hate crime and I don’t want to promote that.”