Lee Anderson says he has Muslim pals as he insists ‘I’m not racist’
Lee Anderson has insisted he has Muslim pals as he argued he’s not a racist in a wierd interview.
The MP went on GB News, the place he has a £100,000-a-year job, to defend himself over claims of Islamophobia.
He has been stripped of the Conservative Party whip after he informed the channel on Friday that Sadiq Khan is managed by “Islamists”.
Appearing on Monday night, Mr Anderson mentioned he is not going to apologise till the day he dies. “I’m not sorry because I stand by my words. It’s not racist to call out Islamists,” he mentioned.
The Ashfield MP argued the Conservatives “could have given me a little bit more backing” as he was keen to indicate “a little bit of contrition”. But he added: “I didn’t directly apologise to Mayor Khan, which I’m not going to, not while I’ve got a breath in my body because the comments I made weren’t racist at all.”
Mr Anderson declined to say whether or not he’ll defect to Reform UK after Nigel Farage steered he can be welcome within the rival get together, however he insisted: “I will be standing at the next election.”
Asked if he has any Muslim pals, Mr Anderson mentioned: “I’ve got a few in Parliament and a few back home. The ones in Parliament are not very happy about remarks, but what I say to them is my comments weren’t racist.
“You can be a white person and be a Muslim, you can be Chinese and be a Muslim, you can be an African and a Muslim, so it is not racist. This Islamophobia, I don’t really understand what that means other than you criticising what’s in the Quran or a religion.”
Appearing on GB News on Friday night, Mr Anderson mentioned that Mr Khan had “given our capital city away to his mates”. “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 added.
Rishi Sunak has mentioned he doesn’t imagine Mr Anderson is a racist or Islamophobe, however admitted his remarks have been “wrong” and “not acceptable”. Asked on BBC native radio whether or not his get together has an Islamophobia downside, the Prime Minister mentioned: “No, of course it doesn’t.”
Transport Secretary Mark Harper suggested Mr Anderson could be welcomed back by the party, telling Sky News: “He’s contributed loads previously. I’d wish to see him have the ability to contribute to the Conservative Party sooner or later.”
Mr Anderson moonlights as a £100,000-a-year TV presenter on GB News though he used to rail towards those that cut up their time between the Commons and different work. The Ashfield MP has a historical past of claiming controversial issues. He has repeatedly ranted about struggling Brits counting on foodbanks – and earned the nickname ’30p Lee’ for his claims about the price of meals.
