REMEMBER WHEN: A day in the life of Theresa May

Just eight weeks after being elected as an MP, Mrs May was busy settling into her new role.

An average Monday in her life involved Ministers’ Questions, dealing with constituents, opening mail and private meetings.

Back then, she was the new opposition; the Conservatives had just lost the general election to the Labour party, lead by Tony Blair.

Speaking about her new role, she said: “If you stand back you feel a great weight of responsibility.

“Opposition is a very real role.

“It’s about making sure the government is doing what it says it’s doing.”

During a packed Ministers’ Questions, Mrs May stood to ask her question:

“Could the government say when a decision on the location of the new British sports academy would be made?”

Tony Banks, who was then the parliamentary under secretary responsible for sports replied: “The honourable lady obviously has problems with the theory of time.

“The government has been around for only nine weeks and I have been doing the job for only eight weeks.” He added he didn’t want to make a decision in ‘such great haste that I shall have to repent at great leisure’.

Question time was only part of the day in her role as Maidenhead MP.

After Ministers’ Questions she was interrogated by a Phd student researching women’s political representation.

When asked about women’s quotas she said: “I don’t like the concept of quotas. I’ve never felt the need. I wouldn’t want to be selected in that way.”

Mrs May spent the afternoon in her office, opening mail.

In her office there were letters from constituents, replies from government departments, pamphlets and leaflets from lobby and parliamentary groups.

Mrs May had been appointed to the select committee on education and employment. She was also part of the shadow trade and industry and the home affairs teams.

“I’m used to an environment where you are all working together but here the organisation is much more haphazard,” she said. “In a business environment you work much more in teams, rather than as individuals.

“I enjoy all of it. I enjoy being in the House, particularly speaking in debate and contributing.

“I also enjoy my constituency work because you can get something done for people.

“Not every case has a solution that satisfies everyone but at least one can try.”