A c-store owner’s “bit of fun” rebounded when a political agent took offence to a saucy home-made poster featuring two government ministers.

In the weeks leading up to the the general election, Subhash Varambhia, owner of Snutch News, in Fosse Road South, Leicester, put a rather risque picture of his local MP on a billboard outside his shop.

The MP in question was former Trade & Industry and now Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, who lives close to Subhash’s shop and who is known in her Leicester West constituency as ‘Patsy’. Under the headline ‘I’m your MP - vote me out’ appeared the face of Mrs Hewitt grafted onto the body of a scantily-clad buxom woman receiving the admiring attention of Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, also suitably mocked-up for the occasion.

Sadly, Patricia Hewitt’s agent didn’t see the funny side and sent a letter of complaint to Leicester City Council, saying the poster implied “impropriety of a sexual nature”. The council threw out the complaint, saying it was unable to respond to the issue. Subhash said: “I could almost hear The Speaker’s cries of ‘Order, Order’ ringing in my ears when the complaint went in. It was just a bit of fun, and Patsy is welcome in my shop any time.”