By Ian Silvera

A Liberal Democrat MP, a week after Nick Clegg’s vow to address Britain’s lack of social mobility, has advertised for a ‘volunteer’ intern, I can reveal today.

Manchester Withington MP John Leech is looking for a casework intern and a communication intern for his constituency office and a research intern for his parliamentary office.

The first advertisement to go up, for a research intern, was posted on the website W4MP on 31 May.

The advertisement states that the internship is for a minimum of three months and up to 12 months full-time, although the member of the Transport Select Committee would welcome applications from those unable to work full-time.

In a statement, Mr Leech said the purpose of the interns were to help his constituents and people in need of help.

The 41-year-old was keen to stress that he has a strong reputation for helping others which leads to a high volume of correspondence – this workload, he claims, is typically far higher than most MPs.

The Brunel University graduate added that he started his political career volunteering his time as an intern for Manchester Liberal Democrats to get his ‘foot on the ladder’ and that his previous interns have had an exciting and joyful experience. Continue reading →