A seriously eyebrow-raising set of comments from Commons leader Lucy Powell on Any Questions last night during a discussion around councils with Tim Montgomerie:
Listen to the full clip above. Think co-conspirators can make up their own minds about that…
UPDATE I: A Reform spokesman tells Guido:
“Lucy Powell’s comments are nothing short of abhorrent. It’s quite clear that Labour aren’t taking the mass rape of British women and girls seriously. It’s high time a national inquiry with statutory powers was launched, if not, Reform will do this within our first month of taking office. Keir Starmer should now be considering her position in Government, is she really fit to serve with these comments?”
UPDATE II: Lucy Powell says on X:
“In the heat of a discussion on AQ, I would like to clarify that I regard issues of child exploitation & grooming with the utmost seriousness. I’m sorry if this was unclear. I was challenging the political point scoring around it, not the issue itself. As a constituency MP I’ve dealt with horrendous cases. This Gvt is acting to get to the truth, and deliver justice.”
UPDATE III: Tories call on Powell to resign. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp says:
“This shocking outburst from a Labour Cabinet Minister belittles the thousands of girls and women who were raped by grooming gangs over decades. We have consistently called for a national enquiry in Parliament, which has been blocked by Labour Ministers who don’t seem to know or care about the disgusting crimes which have been perpetrated. Anyone who has seen the shocking channel 4 documentary will know that it is clearer than ever that this is not a ‘dog whistle’. To dismiss thousands of victims who were raped and the cover up that followed is sickening. She should resign.”
Former Treasury minister and adviser to Burnham in the Makerfield campaign Lord Jim O’Neill, who has turned down a role in his government, said Burnham’s first statement Commons was:
“The last thing investors wanted to hear… gilt yields have risen by a 0.25% in one day, which is a lot. We’ve not had that since Liz Truss days… If your country is under the focus of ‘can they come up with a sensible fiscal strategy’ on a day when the markets think ‘well no, you’re not showing any sign of it’ you’re going to have a tough day…if it stays like this your mortgage rate is going up.”