MP Claire Perry says she quit as rail minister in order to speak out against government policy following the Brexit referendum result.

The Devizes MP, who represents Durrington, Bulford and Tidworth, claims she told new prime minister Theresa May that she did not want to be considered for a frontbench role.

In her role as a junior minister in the Department for Transport, she was blamed for her failure to resolve a dispute between Southern Rail management and staff. Many expected her to be sacked by Mrs May during her brutal reshuffle and Ms Perry admitted that she was "ultimately responsible for the chaos" that passengers have endured on the route for the last two years.

But in her first public comments after leaving government, she explained that she wants the freedom to speak up for constituents without being tied by a government role.

"In my six years of being your MP I have spent more than 80 per cent of the time on the Government 'payroll' – first as a Parliamentary Private Secretary to Philip Hammond in Defence, then as a Government Whip and latterly as Rail Minister," Ms Perry said.

"The term is misleading – there is no increase in salary for being a PPS – but in all of those roles I have been expected to support every aspect of government policy and vote with the Government at all times.

"As we enter a period of prolonged uncertainty for the country with many important decisions to be made, I want to have the freedom to debate crucial issues and speak up for my constituents without concerns over patronage and promotion.

"I am very much looking forward to this freedom, and to having more time to help those I serve in the Devizes constituency."

Ms Perry was an advisor to George Osborne before becoming MP for Devizes in 2010. She was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Transport on July 15, 2014 and again in May 2015.