Very liberal democrat Anna Arrowsmith is hoping to swap porn for parliament.

Mrs Arrowsmith, of Groombridge near Crowborough, is planning on ditching her career as a director of blue films and show some of her more liberal characteristics as she runs for MP.

For the past 12 years Mrs Arrowsmith, 38, has run adult entertainment business Easy On The Eye Films with husband Tim.

Now Britain's first female porn director has announced plans to stand as a Liberal Democrat candidate in the next general election.

Her life story has as many twists as the plot of one of her films - the fine art graduate with a masters in philosophy has also twice been named best director in the UK Adult Film and TV Awards.

Under the pseudonym Anna Span, the prospective MP has made more than 300 saucy films, but said her background would help if she was elected as MP for Gravesham in Kent.

She said: "I would say to my constituents, don't judge me by the industry as a whole. I have gone into the porn industry with a view to changing it and making it more female friendly.

“I've spent years campaigning for equal opportunities for female workers and I think this has given me an excellent experience for the coming campaign.

"I have gone into politics as I was rather disgusted at the expenses issue.

"I am not a professional politician. I have worked all my life to set up a successful business and I want to fight for the rights of people in Gravesham."

Mrs Arrowsmith, who said she started making “female friendly” films in a bid to make porn more accessible to women, had an unlikely inspiration for her new choice of career.

She said: "I remember as a seven-year-old watching Margaret Thatcher campaigning and being desperate for her to win, not because she was Conservative, my family being Labour, but because she would be the first female prime minister.

"I don't know where that strong sense to fight for female equality came from but it was there even then."

A Liberal Democrat party spokesman said: "We are proud to have candidates throughout the country with a great diversity of backgrounds and life experiences.”

She will be challenging Conservative Adam Holloway for the seat, which he won by 654 votes in the last election.

Mrs Arrowsmith is not the first Sussex prospective polititian with a colourful past.

In 2005 former Playboy model Marina Pepper ran as a Liberal Democrat candidate for the Brighton Kemptown seat. She came in third, gaining 16.5% of the votes.