THE home secretary Theresa May launched an attack on Labour’s pick to be Merseyside’s first elected police chief Jane Kennedy yesterday – claiming people did not want ex-MPs to “run anything”.

Theresa May turned her fire on former Wavertree MP Jane Kennedy, who is one of five former Labour ministers selected to run in November’s elections across England.

On Monday Ms Kennedy defeated another ex-minister, Peter Kilfoyle, to run for the £85,000-a-year post of police and crime commissioner (PCC).

But just 24 hours later Mrs May told a Westminster lunch: “I have to say the list of candidates has a very large number of former Labour members of parliament on it.

“I am not sure an awful lot of people out there are really into wanting to vote for former members of parliament to run anything.”

Today Ms Kennedy hit back at the home secretary’s comments, saying: “This is a high-profile, powerful, political job which the Conservatives have created.

“Someone with experience in a high-profile, political job – and I was a minister in Northern Ireland – is exactly the sort of person the public will turn to.”