WORCESTER MP Robin Walker made his first visit to the House of Commons since the coroanvirus lockdown began, describing the corridors of power as "distinctively spooky."

Mr Walker, who attended the House of Commons for Prime Minister's Questions for the first time in a matter of months on Wednesday (May 13), said it was "very strange" to see the chamber so empty for an event that usually had hundreds of people crammed in and hustling for space.

The city's MP, as part of his role as minster at the Northern Ireland office, answered questions from Labour MP Ian Lavery on personal protective equipment (PPE) for Northern Ireland's frontline workers.

Mr Walker said: "It was very strange; it was like a ghost town.

"Everything is very spaced out and the only people around really are police and security.

“Prime Minister’s Questions would usually have hundreds of people packed in, but I would say there was only 20 people there. It was a very weird atmosphere.

“It feels completely different.

"On the government side there was probably as many people as you are allowed, around 20, but on the opposition side there was two maybe three people on the benches including Keir Starmer."

Mr Walker also said how unusual it was to see government buildings usually filled with thousands of people completely deserted.

“I briefly popped into the Northern Ireland office, and our office is in the Treasury building, it’s a huge office block where usually I would walk past at least a hundred people just walking to the office," he said.

"The corridors would be packed with people, and I had a look at lunchtime when it would usually be even busier with queues of people and literally the only people I saw were the security guards.

“It’s a huge space and seeing how empty it was really does bring it home how quiet everything is whilst all the civil servants are working from home.

"The corridors of power are distinctively spooky."

Mr Walker said it would be a “good thing” if MPs could return properly after the Whitsun recess next month, as fellow Conservative MP Jacob Rees Mogg had suggested, but only if it was managed sensibly. He said the sooner Parliament could return to normal the better, but MPs could not ignore social distancing.

“I think from that perspective, [the lockdown] is a significant diminution in the ability of the House of Commons to do its job and question. The sooner we can return to normality the better.

“Of course, I understand that we need to set an example for the country and we can’t avoid social distancing. It’s a difficult balance to strike,” he said.