Rishi Sunak has finally broken his silence over the Lee Anderson ‘Islamophobia’ row, following the popular Tory MPs suspension on Saturday.
The PM was criticised over the weekend after he released a statement warning about polarisation and extremism, but refusing to be drawn on Mr Anderson specifically.
This morning in a local BBC radio interview, however, he finally tackled the news head-on.
Asked whether the Conservative Party has “Islamophobic tendencies”, Mr Sunak rejected this, arguing: “No, of course it doesn’t”.
Mr Sunak said: “It’s incumbent on all of us, especially those elected to Parliament not to inflame our debates in a way that’s harmful to others”.
“Lee’s comments weren’t acceptable, they were wrong, and that’s why he’s had the whip suspended”.
He went on to echo his deputy Oliver Dowden in warning: “Words matter, especially in the current environment where tensions are running high, and I think it’s incumbent on all of us to choose them carefully”.
The Prime Minister was asked by BBC Radio York presenter Georgey Spanswick whether he felt ‘frustrated’ at having lost such an important Red Wall asset ahead of the election.
Mr Sunak said the row “is not about that” and “in a situation like this it’s important we maintain high standards”.
“Unfortunately the words Lee chose weren’t acceptable, they were wrong, and that’s why the whip was suspended.”
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