Farage woos Anderson after Tory sacked over Khan comments
LEE ANDERSON has been offered a place in the Reform party by Nigel Farage after he was stripped of the Conservative whip for claiming that “Islamists [had] got control” of Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor.
Mr Farage said he believed Mr Anderson would “feel happier” in Reform and be a “massive help to the cause” after the MP for Ashfield was suspended for comments criticised as Islamophobic.
Mr Anderson, a former deputy chair of the Conservative Party, made the comments on Friday afternoon when speaking about the policing of pro-Palestinian protests. He told GB News: “I don’t actually believe that the Islamists have got control of our country, but what I do believe is they’ve got control of Khan and they’ve got control of London. He’s actually given our capital city away to his mates.”
The Tories confirmed they had withdrawn the whip yesterday after Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, claimed his words were “blatant Islamophobia”. He was also criticised by Tory MPs, including Nusrat Ghani, a business minister, who said that his remarks were “dangerous”.
A spokesman for Simon Hart, the Chief Whip, said that Mr Anderson had been suspended “following his refusal to apologise for comments”. Last night, Mr Anderson said on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Following a call with the Chief Whip, I understand the difficult position that I have put both he and the Prime Minister in with regard to my comments. I fully accept that they had no option but to suspend the whip in these circumstances.
“However, I will continue to support the Government’s efforts to call out extremism in all its forms – be that antiSemitism or Islamophobia.”
The news of Mr Anderson’s suspension prompted speculation that he could switch to Reform, with the Tory MP claiming last year that he had already turned down an invitation to
defect. Yesterday, Mr Farage, Reform’s honorary president, said that the party would open its doors to him. “I just think Lee has a very good heart. He’s still relatively new at politics, he’s had a few ups and downs, but I think his heart is in the right place and he’d be a massive help to the cause,” he said. “He’d probably feel happier in Reform than he has in the current Conservative Party.”
Asked about the Tories’ decision to suspend the whip, Mr Farage replied: “It doesn’t surprise me at all. They are a social democrat party, they don’t like open free speech.”
After making the comments, the pressure on Mr Anderson built through Friday night and into yesterday morning, with Labour calling for the whip to be withdrawn.
Mr Anderson also came under fire from some Tory figures. Sir Sajid Javid, the former home secretary, described his remarks as “ridiculous”.
Yesterday, Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, distanced himself from the comments but appeared to defend Mr Anderson’s right to “speak his mind”.
The Telegraph understands that Ms Ghani, who is a Muslim, contacted Mr Anderson about the remarks on Friday night before speaking to him again yesterday. It is understood that Mr Anderson had an “amicable” conversation with Mr Hart by phone in which it was made clear to him that he would be suspended if he did not apologise. The two men will meet again this week.
The Telegraph understands that the Tories felt they had to take swift action in light of the pressure that Labour came under after Azhar Ali, their candidate in the Rochdale by-election, became embroiled in an anti-Semitism row.
However, Mr Khan criticised the “silence” from Mr Sunak over the affair, claiming “blatant anti-Muslim hatred” was being tolerated within his party.
“We all rightly unite in our condemnation of anti-Semitism, homophobia and misogyny,” he said. “Racism is racism.”
Last night, several Tory MPs expressed support for Mr Anderson. One ally said: “Lee needs to be more careful with the language he uses. But he’s right to call out the failing London Labour Mayor and to express his concerns about radical Islam.
“He wants to stand as a Conservative at the next election and I’m very confident he will.”
Another MP claimed that his suspension could rebound on Mr Sunak in the same way as Boris Johnson’s handling of complaints against Chris Pincher.