Statue of pioneering woman MP moved to fix wobble

The statue of Nancy Astor was unveiled on Plymouth Hoe in November 2019

A statue of the first female MP to take her seat in the House of Commons has been temporarily moved for repairs.

Plymouth City Council said the bronze figure of Nancy Astor was taken away on Monday from its position on the Hoe for up to 12 weeks while "essential maintenance work" was completed.

The authority said a wobble had developed due to the statue's position on the seafront and exposure to the elements.

Astor became the first woman to sit as an MP in November 1919 when she was elected to represent Plymouth Sutton, a position she held until June 1945.

Maintenance work on the Nancy Astor statue is expected to take about 12 weeks to complete

The council said the work would be focused on the plinth which supported the statue, located just outside Astor's former home at 3 Elliot Terrace.

A specialist clean is also due to be done on the statue, the council added.

The statue was sculpted by Hayley Gibbs and unveiled in November 2019 by former Prime Minister Theresa May to mark the 100th anniversary of Astor's election to Parliament.

Sinn Féin's Constance Markievicz was the first woman to be elected as an MP in December 1918, but she did not take her seat in accordance with the policy of her party.