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Jess Phillips has revealed how a complaint was made to the Electoral Commission after she tweeted how she had given out seven foodbank vouchers to families on polling day.

In her acceptance speech after retaining her Yardley seat, a clearly angry Phillips said she was held up attending the count when her agent John O'Shea contacted her to inform her of the complaint.

"As I was arriving to the count my agent John told me someone had reported me to the Electoral Commission for treating.

"This was because I got on Twitter, as is my way, and said I had administered seven foodbank vouchers today. So (the complaint) was because some people consider a foodbank parcel for a family that has nothing is a treat."

Under polling day rules candidates are barred from doing anything that could influence a voter, including by distributing 'treats' - a move that could be seen as 'cheating'.

She added: "That is the country we have become - thinking food parcels are a treat. And we can pretend it's different, and in some parts of the country it is, but in this part of the country this is our reality.

"Some people think it is a treat to be able to feed your children.

"The reality is that the people who have led to this, have done this to our country, have won an election because the people who should have fought against it have failed."