Lee Anderson suspended from Tory Party over 'Islamophobic' comments about London mayor
The Conservative MP for Ashfield in Nottinghamshire said "Islamists" had "got control" of Sadiq Khan
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson has been suspended from the party after "refusing to apologise" for comments aimed at Sadiq Khan.
He told GB News on Friday "Islamists" had "got control" of the mayor of London.
Responding on Saturday, Mr Khan described the remarks as "pouring fuel on the fire of anti-Muslim hatred".
Mr Anderson said his comments had put the chief whip and PM in a "difficult position".
Losing the Conservative whip essentially expels Mr Anderson from his party in Parliament.
Speaking on GB News Mr Anderson said: "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."
Lee Anderson has said he accepts the Tory party had "no option" but to suspend him over "Islamophobic" comments he made about the mayor of London.
In a post on X after he was suspended on Saturday afternoon, the former Tory deputy chairman said: "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."
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said "it's right" Mr Anderson had been suspended after his "appalling racist and Islamophobic outburst against Sadiq Khan".
In a statement on X, he added: "Rishi Sunak's weakness means Tory MPs act with impunity... The Tories may be getting more and more desperate as the election approaches, but Rishi Sunak has a responsibility to stop this slide into ever more toxic rhetoric."
Reaction from Muslim Council of Britain and deputy PM
Britain's largest Muslim body said the Conservative Party must launch an investigation into alleged "structural Islamophobia" within its ranks.
The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) claimed anti-Muslim sentiment in the party was "on public display this week", following the suspension of MP Lee Anderson and an article written in the Telegraph by Suella Braverman, in which the former home secretary said "the Islamists, the extremists and the antisemites are in charge now".
While deputy PM Oliver Dowden said he does not believe Lee Anderson was "intending" to be Islamophobic.
He said that "words matter" but refused to say whether he thinks the words were racist, saying he understands why the words have "caused offence".
He told Sky News' Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: "he was given the oppotunity to apologise and he didn't do so, so therefore we removed the whip."
Until January Mr Anderson served as one of the deputy chairmen of the Conservative Party, but he resigned so he could rebel against the government over the Rwanda vote.