Tag Archives: diane abbott

Keir Starmer Leads Tributes To Diane Abbott Weeks After Selection Row

Posted on by
Reply

Keir Starmer has led tributes in the Commons to Diane Abbott, just weeks after she was at the centre of a row over whether she would stand for Labour at the election.

The veteran left-winger has become the mother of the House of Commons as the longest-serving female MP.

But just two months ago, it looked as though she would not even be a Labour candidate over a long-running feud with party bosses.

Abbott, who was first elected MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington in 1987, was stripped of the Labour whip in April last year over allegations of anti-Semitism.

She eventually had the whip restored at the end of May, but senior Labour sources said she would not be allowed to stand as an election candidate for the party.

However, after a furious backlash, Labour bosses finally relented and she was re-elected last week with a majority of 15,080.

As MPs returned to parliament today for the first time since the election, Starmer and Rishi Sunak both praised Abbott’s contribution to British politics.

Addressing the re-elected Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle, the prime minister said: “I hope you will not begrudge me for a slight departure from convention to also pay tribute to the new mother of the house, Diane Abbott, who has done so much in her career over so many years to fight for a parliament that truly represents modern Britain. We welcome her back to her place.”

Sunak said: “We have our differences on policy, but no one can deny the right honourable lady’s important role in this house and the inspiration for so many young women of colour that she has provided.

“The right honourable lady is truly, in every sense of the word, a trailblazer.”

Abbott said: “When I was a new member in 1987, there were only 40 female members of parliament. Today we have 264, and some of us are glad that we have lived to see this.

“And I can’t speak about the increased numbers of female members of parliament without referencing my predecessor, Baroness Harriet Harman, who did so much to work to have an equal and diverse house.”

Share Button

Diane Abbott Has Not Been Banned From Standing For Labour, Says Keir Starmer

Posted on by
Reply

Keir Starmer has said it is “not true” that Diane Abbott has been banned from standing as a Labour candidate at the general election.

The veteran MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington has been given the Labour whip back after a lengthy suspension.

But it has been reported she will not be allowed to stand for re-election as a Labour candidate in the seat she has represented since 1987.

Abbott said she was “dismayed” at the suggestion she would be blocked.

But speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Starmer said this was not accurate.

“No decision has been taken to bar Diane Abbott,” he said.

“The process that we were going through ended with the restoration of the whip the other day, so she’s a member of the Parliamentary Labour Party, and no decision has been taken barring her.”

Asked if repots that she had been banned, the Labour leader said: “No, that’s not true”

Abbott had the Labour whip suspended in April 2023 after she said Jewish, Irish and Traveller people were not subject to racism “all their lives”.

The former shadow home secretary, a close ally of Jeremy Corbyn, apologised and withdrew the comments quickly.

BBC Newsnight revealed on Tuesday that Labour finished its investigation into her conduct five months ago, but publicly claimed that the disciplinary process was still ongoing.

Labour’s National Executive Committee wrote to Abbott in December issuing her with a “formal warning” for “engaging in conduct that was “prejudicial and grossly detrimental” to the party.

At the committee’s request, Abbott then completed an “online e-learning module” in February.

Starmer is under pressure to explain what he has said about the investigation. Last week he said Abbott was still “going through” and independent disciplinary process despite it having already concluded.

Abbott was the first black woman to be elected to parliament when she won her seat, which she currently holds with a majority of more than 33,000.

Share Button

Diane Abbott’s Hopes Of Getting The Labour Whip Back Have Been Dashed By Keir Starmer

Posted on by
Reply

Diane Abbott’s hopes of getting the Labour whip back appear to have been dashed by Keir Starmer.

The Labour leader said it was right to “support” the MP after the Tories’ biggest donor, Frank Hester, was alleged to have said she made him “want to hate all black women” and “should be shot”.

However, Starmer said that should not be “conflated” with the anti-Semitism accusations Abbott faces over a letter she sent to The Observer which said that Jewish, Irish and Traveller people have never been “subject to racism”.

She later apologised “unreservedly” for any “anguish” and said she withdrew the comments, but remains under investigation by the Labour Party.

Senior figures – including Ed Balls and John McDonnell – have called for Abbott to have the whip restored.

But on BBC Radio 2 today, Starmer insisted “that was for an entirely different issue” from the Hester row.

“That was allegations of anti-Semitism in relation to a letter, which is subject to an ongoing investigation which is separate from me,” he said.

The Labour leader said the party “must support” Abbott and insisted she was a “trailblazer” as parliament’s first black female MP.

Presenter Jeremy Vine then said: “In some countries there would be a statue of her, and yet she may not be able to fight her seat in the next election if you don’t hurry up and resolve this.”

But Starmer said: “All I’m saying is the abhorrent language used by the Tory donor about Diane Abbott is abhorrent, needs to be called out, the money needs to be returned. That’s one thing.

“There is a separate issue, which is Diane’s own language, which is subject to a different procedure. I don’t think we can conflate the two at this stage.”

HuffPost UK revealed yesterday that there was no imminent prospect of Abbott returning to the Labour fold.

But deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner later said she wanted to see the MP re-admitted to the parliamentary Labour party.

She said: “Personally, I would like to see Diane back but the Labour party has to follow its procedures.

“And for me, that is the most important thing – that we have made sure our party is fit to govern by making sure we have got complaint procedures that are robust and people can have confidence in.”

Share Button

Rishi Sunak Has Finally Said Frank Hester’s Comments About Diane Abbott Were ‘Racist’

Posted on by
Reply

Rishi Sunak has finally said Frank Hester’s alleged comments about Diane Abbott were “racist”.

The move came hours after business secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to do so and followed a day of confusion in Downing Street.

In a statement issued this evening, a No.10 spokesman said: “The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong.

“He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted.

“The prime minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and as the first British-Asian prime minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact.”

The Guardian reported yesterday that Hester said in 2019 that said Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.

That led to calls for the Tories to hand back the £10 million he gave to the party last year.

However, senior government figures were initially sent out by Downing Street to defend Hester this morning.

Energy minister Graham Stuart said he made his comments “half a decade ago”, while work and pensions secretary Stride said “we need to move on”.

At two separate Downing Street briefings for journalists today, the PM’s spokespeople also repeatedly refused to say Hester’s remarks were racist.

But pressure was piled on Sunak when business secretary Kemi Badenoch posted on X: “Hester’s 2019 comments, as reported, were racist.

“I welcome his apology. Abbott and I disagree on a lot. But the idea of linking criticism of her, to being a black woman is appalling. It’s never acceptable to conflate someone’s views with the colour of their skin.”

Hester, who runs health tech firm TPP, allegedly made the remarks at a staff meeting.

Talking about a female executive at another firm, he reportedly said: “It’s like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you’re just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she’s there, and I don’t hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot.

″[The executive] and Diane Abbott need to be shot.”

TPP said Hester “accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.

In his first public comments on the row, Hester said “racism … is a poison that has no place in public life”.

He added: “The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people – like my parents – who had roots in another land, religion and culture.

“We should celebrate those differences which have made us the world’s most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence.”

In a statement, Diane Abbott said: “It is frightening. I live in Hackney and do not drive, so I find myself, at weekends, popping on a bus or even walking places more than most MPs.

“I am a single woman and that makes me vulnerable anyway. But to hear someone talking like this is worrying.”

“The fact that two MPs have been murdered in recent years makes talk like this all the more alarming.”

Share Button

Kemi Badenoch Breaks Ranks To Say Frank Hester’s Comments About Diane Abbott Were ‘Racist’

Posted on by
Reply

Kemi Badenoch has said Tory donor Frank Hester’s alleged comments about Diane Abbott were “racist” as pressure mounted on Rishi Sunak to do the same.

The Guardian reported that Hester said in 2019 that said Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.

That led to calls for the Tories to hand back the £10 million he gave to the party last year.

A spokesman for TPP, the tech firm Hester runs, said he “accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.

Downing Street repeatedly refused today to call the remarks “racist”, insisting instead that they were “unacceptable”.

A spokeswoman for the prime minister, who spent the day working in No.10, told reporters: “What is alleged and reported to have been said would clearly have been unacceptable, but we are not going to characterise further alleged comments from source reporting.”

But Badenoch broke ranks with the PM to make her views clear on X (formerly Twitter).

She said: “Hester’s 2019 comments, as reported, were racist.

“I welcome his apology. Abbott and I disagree on a lot. But the idea of linking criticism of her, to being a black woman is appalling. It’s never acceptable to conflate someone’s views with the colour of their skin.

“MPs have a difficult job balancing multiple interests -often under threats of intimidation as we saw recently in parliament.

“Some people make flippant comments without thinking of this context. This is why there needs to be space for forgiveness where there is contrition.”

Meanwhile, health minister Maria Caulfield told the BBC: “I condemn these comments – I personally do find them racist- it’s not something we should be kind of excusing in any way.”

The comments were at odds with fellow ministers Graham Stuart and Mel Stride, both of whom sought to play down the row earlier today.

Stuart, the energy minister, said Hester made his comments “half a decade ago”, while work and pensions secretary Stride said “we need to move on”.

In his first public comments on the row, Hester said “racism … is a poison that has no place in public life”.

He added: “The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people – like my parents – who had roots in another land, religion and culture.

“We should celebrate those differences which have made us the world’s most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence.”

In a statement, Diane Abbott said: “It is frightening. I live in Hackney and do not drive, so I find myself, at weekends, popping on a bus or even walking places more than most MPs.

“I am a single woman and that makes me vulnerable anyway. But to hear someone talking like this is worrying.”

“The fact that two MPs have been murdered in recent years makes talk like this all the more alarming.”

Share Button

Cabinet Minister Slammed For Saying ‘Move On’ Over Frank Hester’s Dianne Abbott Comments

Posted on by
Reply

A cabinet minister has been condemned after he said people need to “move on” from a race row engulfing the Tory Party’s biggest donor.

Frank Hester, who gave the Conservatives £10 million last year, reportedly said Diane Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.

But work and pensions secretary Mel Stride said that while the remarks were “inappropriate”, it was not “a gender-based or a race-based comment”.wes

He added: “He has apologised and I think we need to move on from that.”

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said Stride’s response showed the Tory Party was “rotten to its core and unfit for office”.

Former Tory adviser Sam Freedman said: “This line is so appalling that it can only be in use because Hester is demanding that they stick to his line.

“Mel Stride is not a stupid person. There is no way he thinks this is a good or reasonable line.”

Asked if the Tories should hand back the money Hester gave them, he said: “We can’t cancel anybody from participation in public life, or indeed donating to parties because they said something intemperate and wrong in their past.

“It’s not my decision, but I do welcome those who support the Conservative Party to ensure that we have Rishi Sunak – our first Hindu prime minister.”

Share Button

Diane Abbott Questions Labour Attacking ‘Indian-Heritage PM’ In Controversial Ads

Posted on by
Reply

Diane Abbott has attacked Labour’s controversial adverts attacking Rishi Sunak in the latest sign of internal party disquiet.

The initial ad, which accused the prime minister of not wanting child sex abusers to go to prison, caused unease among the shadow cabinet with shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell declining to endorse it.

On Monday, Abbott, who was shadow home secretary under Jeremy Corbyn, responded to a tweet from Shabana Mahmood, the party’s national campaign coordinator who defended the aggressive ads.

Mahmood wrote: “People don’t want more excuses from politicians – they want answers. Labour is the party of law and order.”

In response, Abbott said: “But do people want a party that posts pictures of an Indian-heritage PM claiming he does not want sex offenders put in prison?”

She said in an earlier tweet: “Starmer stands by his ad. Does he also stand by suggesting Indian-heritage PM won’t put sex abusers in prison, when right wing says most sex abusers are from Indian sub-continent?”

Abbott has recently criticised home secretary Suella Braverman for rhetoric claiming most child sex abusers are Pakistani.

Others on the Labour left have expressed their unease with the tactics. Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said Labour is “better than this” and Corbyn – who has been suspended from the parliamentary party – has hit out at “dog-whistle politics”.

Starmer has dismissed criticism of the advert, saying he made “absolutely zero apologies” for the campaign regardless of how “squeamish” it made people feel.

Writing in the Daily Mail, the Labour leader said he refused “to just stand by or avoid calling this what it is”.

Senior party figures including former home secretary Lord David Blunkett called for the ad to be withdrawn, arguing that Labour is better than the “gutter” politics.

Further adverts scheduled to drop ahead of the May local elections are to include one suggesting Sunak thinks it is right that the public is paying for the “Conservatives crashing the economy” through higher housing costs.

<img class="img-sized__img landscape" loading="lazy" alt="Labour’s two attack adverts following the same format.” width=”720″ height=”478″ src=”https://www.wellnessmaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/diane-abbott-questions-labour-attacking-indian-heritage-pm-in-controversial-ads-2.jpg”>
Labour’s two attack adverts following the same format.

Labour Party

The row centres on a tweet in which Labour highlighted analysis of official data and said that under the Tories “4,500 adults convicted of sexually assaulting children under-16 served no prison time”.

Alongside a photo of the prime minister, it read: “Do you think adults convicted of sexually assaulting children should go to prison? Rishi Sunak doesn’t.”

Judges and magistrates, rather than the prime minister of the day, are responsible for handing out sentences.

The figures Labour highlighted cover the period since 2010, five years before Sunak entered parliament. He did not become prime minister until October last year.

Share Button

Sunday Shows Round-Up: The Snap Election Stand-Off Edition

Posted on by
Reply

HuffPost is part of Verizon Media. Verizon Media and our partners need your consent to access your device and use your data (including location) to understand your interests, and provide and measure personalised ads. Verizon Media will also provide you with personalised ads on partner products. Learn more.

Select ‘OK’ to continue and allow Verizon Media and our partners to use your data, or select ‘Manage options’ to view your choices.

Share Button