The Epsom Guardian is delighted to announce Epsom and Ewell MP Chris Grayling will become its new editor next month.

Chris Caulfield, content editor of the Epsom Guardian and its sister titles, took to Twitter to announce the appointment.

He tweeted: “Thrilled to announce the new editor of the @EpsomGuardian is Chris Grayling.

“I am proud to have an editor of such substance, who reinforces the Epsom Guardian’s standing and influence in north Surrey.

“Chris is Epsom through and through and I am confident he is the right person for us.”

Mr Grayling has been the Conservative MP for Epsom and Ewell since 2001 and currently serves in the Government as transport secretary.

In a speech to journalists in Quadrant House, in Sutton, the former justice secretary said: “I may have run the country’s prisons, but I have never run a newspaper.”

Before entering politics, Mr Grayling worked for BBC News as a producer and for Channel 4 as an editor on its Business Daily programme.

Mr Grayling's appointment comes just weeks after fellow Tory MP George Osborne was named editor of the London Evening Standard.

Did we fool you with this one? Happy April Fools Day everyone!