Prime Minister Keir Starmer has branded Nigel Farage ‘utterly spineless’ for failing to condemn a Reform UK councillor for describing children in care as ‘downright evil’
Keir Starmer has branded Nigel Farage “utterly spineless” for failing to condemn a Reform UK councillor for describing children in care as “downright evil”.
The PM slammed the Reform UK leader after he said he didn’t have time to condemn the comments, which Mr Starmer called “utterly appalling”. When asked to condemn them, Mr Farage told MPs he only had 30 seconds to answer his question, before going on to try to boast about a Reform-led’s council action on asylum hotels.
During PMQs, Labour MP Darren Paffey raised the “vile” comments from Reform UK’s Andy Osborn, who is being investigated for an alleged breach of the members’ code of conduct.
He asked Mr Starmer: “While this Labour government is taking real action to support care leavers, a reform councillor has disgracefully described children in care as ‘downright evil’. Well, the Prime Minister and I hope the whole House join me in condemning Reform’s vile rhetoric.
“And will he reassure us that this Labour government will continue to support the protections and opportunities for all our care leavers?”
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The PM replied: “November marks the first ever care leavers months, and that is a time to recognise that every child deserves support to achieve their potential. And through our landmark children’s Wellbeing Bill, we’re requiring every local authority to help care leavers find secure accommodation.
“It saddens me that the parties opposite voted against it. The comments about children in care being evil are utterly appalling. And now the member for Clacton (Mr Farage) has heard them. I’m sure he’ll want to condemn them right now.”
Mr Farage said: “I’ve only got 30 seconds,” before going to ask the PM a question about asylum hotels. He continued: “The Prime Minister has stated very clearly that he wants to close the migrant hotels by the end of this parliament.
“Well, the Reform-led West Northamptonshire Council – brilliantly led council – will be issuing foreclosure notices on three migrant hotels within the next few days in response to grave public concern about the safety of women and girls on the streets of West Northamptonshire. Would the Prime Minister approve of us speeding up the closure of the migrant hotels?”
Mr Starmer criticised Mr Farage for failing to condemn his councillor’s comments. The PM also hit out at the Reform leader for a lack of action against MP Sarah Pochin after she claimed it drove her “mad seeing adverts full of Black and Asian people”.
He said: “We will grip the mess we inherited and close every hotel. At the peak of the previous government, there were 400 hotels. Now there are only 200 remaining.
“But he says he doesn’t have time to condemn the comments calling children in care ‘evil’. He’s also not had the time, it appears, to condemn the racist comments of his own MP, utterly spineless”
In October, after Ms Pochin made her comments, Mr Farage said he was “unhappy” with the “ugly” comments made by Ms Pochin but insisted her intention was not to be racist
Ms Pochin apologised for offence she may have caused by saying “it drives me mad when I see adverts full of Black people, full of Asian people”. Amid a major backlash, she said she hadn’t meant to offend anyone and the comments were “phrased poorly”.