Lee Anderson latest: Tory MP refuses to apologise for Islamophobic Sadiq Khan comments

Reform UK appears to have extended an invite for Lee Anderson to join the party after he was suspended from the Conservatives for Islamophobic comments.

The former Brexit Party, set up by Nigel Farage, said Mr Anderson speaks “for millions who are appalled by what is happening to our country”.

It came after Mr Anderson, who was deputy Tory chairman until last month, was suspended from the party for refusing to apologise for claiming Muslim London mayor Sadiq Khan is controlled by “Islamists”.

Richard Tice, who took over from Mr Farage as Reform’s leader, said: “Lee Anderson may have been clumsy in his precise choice of words, but his sentiments are supported by millions of British citizens, including myself.”

It is widely thought Mr Anderson will consider joining Reform to contest his Ashfield seat at the general election. Mr Farage on Saturday called for Mr Anderson to join the party and take on the Tories.

And on Monday Mr Tice added: “Never has Westminster and the craven left leaning Establishment been so out of touch with ordinary people.

“I do not and will not give a running commentary on any discussions I have with any MPs, but those MPs have my number.”

The government does not tolerate “anti-Muslim hatred in any form”, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister’s spokesperson was challenged over his refusal to refer specifically to Islamophobia or anti-Muslim hatred while condemning prejudice more generally.

The official told reporters: “The PM has been clear that we don’t tolerate any anti-Muslim hatred in any form and we will combat that and any sort of discrimination of that kind, as we do any racism or prejudice and intolerance, wherever it occurs.”

The spokesperson declined to describe Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan as Islamophobic.

Downing Street reiterated the government’s position of refusing to back the all-party parliamentary group on British Muslims’ 2019 definition of Islamophobia.

After Lee Anderson’s comments put a spotlight on the ongoing row over the classification of Islamophobia, Rishi Sunak’s official spokesperson told reporters: “As the government has stated previously, there are issues in relation to the APPG’s definition of Islamophobia, which conflates race with religion, does not address sectarianism within Islam, and may unintentionally undermine freedom of speech.

“But as I’ve said, we have always been clear that this government does not and will not tolerate anti-Muslim hatred.”

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He added: “More broadly in terms of any racism, any prejudice in relation to Islam, the government clearly does not tolerate anti-Muslim hatred in that respect and will always seek to combat it, wherever it occurs.”

Here is more from Lee Anderson’s statement via GB News:

The suspended Tory MP said he had made “clumsy” comments “that some people thought were divisive”, adding: “Politics is divisive and I am just incredibly frustrated about the abject failures of the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.”

He continued: “My words may have been clumsy but my words were borne out of sheer frustration at what is happening to our beautiful capital city.”

In a fresh attack on Sadiq Khan, Lee Anderson accused the London Mayor of “double standards for political benefit”.

The now-independent Ashfield MP said Mr Khan had called for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war “weeks ago with no conditions while the hostages are still there being held at gunpoint by a terrorist organisation.

“Hundreds of people had been arrested for racist abuse on these marches and we barely hear a peep from the mayor. If these marches were about something less fashionable Sadiq Khan would have been the first to call for them to be cancelled. It’s double standards for political benefit.”

In a statement released via GB News, where he presents a weekly show, he continued: “Khan has stood by and allowed our police to turn a blind eye to the disgusting scenes around Parliament. It is not my intention to upset anyone, I believe in free speech and have 100 per cent respect for people of all backgrounds.”

He concluded: “We’ve got to get Khan out at the elections in May.”

As reported by the website OpenDemocracy, police data suggests only 153 people were arrested at pro-Palestine protests between October and the end of December, just 36 of whom were actually charged.

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The SNP is demanding an investigation into the chaos surrounding the Gaza ceasefire vote after a Labour frontbencher admitted intentionally delaying the debate.

Shadow digital minister Sir Chris Bryant said he was encouraged by Labour figures to stall parliamentary proceedings last Wednesday ahead of a vote on the SNP’s motion calling for a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict.

The disruption was aimed at giving Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer time to convince Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to allow MPs a vote on Labour’s amendment to the SNP motion.

The SNP accused Labour of using “every dirty trick in the book” to wreck the vote.

Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell has the details:

Lee Anderson has said it would be a “sign of weakness” for him to apologise over his Islamophobic remarks about Sadiq Khan.

“If you are wrong, apologising is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength,” he told GB News. “But when you think you are right you should never apologise because to do so would be a sign of weakness.”

The Liberal Democrats have urged Rishi Sunak to make clear that Lee Anderson “won’t be let back into the Conservative Party” after his suspension for widely condemned comments about Sadiq Khan.

The party’s deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “Rishi Sunak needs to condemn Anderson’s comments for what they are, Islamophobic and racist, and make clear he won’t be let back into the Conservative Party.”

The meaning of the term Islamophobia has come under the spotlight following MP Lee Anderson’s suspension for an anti-Muslim rant about Sadiq Khan.

In 2019, the all-party parliamentary group on British Muslims produced a working definition in a bid to help tackle the issue while building a common understanding of its cause and consequences.

Its definition read: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.”

Following its publication, the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats formally adopted the definition backed by more than 750 British Muslim organisations, 80 academics and 50 MPs.

However, the Conservative Party refused to. At the time, a spokesperson said: “Any such approach would need to be considered carefully to ensure that this would have the positive effect intended.”

My colleague Alex Ross has more details here: