BELEAGURED Bournemouth residents would be willing to give British politics the ‘everyman shot in the arm’ it needs in the wake of the damning expenses furore, the Daily Echo has discovered.

We took to the streets to find out if people would swap their lives for that of an MP, and, if so, what their political priorities would be.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t MP expenses that topped the bill, rather the current state of the NHS, the abolishment of inheritance tax and the restoration of Parliamentary confidence.

On Sunday, Tory leader David Cameron called for absolute political novices to throw their hats into the ring and join his party’s list of prospective parliamentary candidates.

Mr Cameron, who wants to “open up the talent that is available”, spoke on the BBC’s Andrew Marr show.

Meanwhile, in Bournemouth, Boscombe art student Jack Grace said he thought the idea of a fresh injection of talent, without any required political pedigree, was a sound one.

The 18-year-old said: “I would like to see the spin taken out of politics. MPs seem out of touch. I don’t think they realise people are struggling as much as they are.

“If I was to stand, I would concentrate on getting rid of the NHS postcode lottery.”

Mr Cameron has at least a quartet of seats to fill, as four of his MPs have already been forced out by the expenses scandal.

Bournemouth businessman David Warwick, 64, could be the sort of representative needed in the House of Commons.

He said: “ “Yes, I think having political newcomers is a good idea.

“People are really frustrated with politics. I would work on returning more power to Parliament.

“We need MPs who are characters, who will buck the system.”

Meanwhile, Kimberley Russell, a 27-year-old sales administrator from Bournemouth, said the hugely unpopular inheritance tax would be abolished if she had her say.

“It’s unbelievable, I mean you work and pay taxes all your life, then when you leave your family a gift when you die, they tax this as well. It’s awful,” she said.

But it’s not all praise for David Cameron’s call – some believe he had to play the party of the people card in the face of damning expenses revelations.

Richard Berger, a lecturer from Bournemouth, pointed out it was Conservative MPs who claimed for floating duck houses and moat cleansing services.

Mr Berger, 35, added: “When you look at the expenses row, what we are seeing is a return of the old Tory Party, which had been hidden away by some clever manipulation. But the mask has slipped.

“I would change taxation – the distribution of wealth in this country.

“The poor are paying too much tax and the rich are not paying enough.”

Kayleigh Mace, a 20-year-old Christchurch physiotherapy student, agreed the idea of regular people fighting for seats in the Commons was a good one – but she conceded it was not a move for her.

She said: “I would change the NHS if I could. I had a friend of a friend who lost out on the NHS postcode lottery. They couldn’t get treatment because of their address. This is wrong.”

And Michael Pursey, a financial services worker from Christchurch, said: “I think people with no political background could do a better job in many ways, as they would be a lot more representative of society as a whole. But I think there are too many rules to being an MP. In many ways you can affect political change easier without being an MP.

“If I could change anything, it would be to improve the NHS.”