Sunak defends taking Frank Hester money after saying racism have to be referred to as out

Rishi Sunak has doubled down on accepting cash from a Tory donor who said Diane Abbott “should be shot” – moments after voicing his fury over racism.

The Prime Minister said it was important to call out hatred after undercover footage showed a Reform UK activist use a racist slur about him. In a grilling by the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg he said the remark was “vile and racist and wrong”.

But Ms Kuenssberg then read out a message by a viewer, who questioned why, then, he had previously accepted millions from donor Frank Hester. The Tories faced calls to return over £10million after it emerged Mr Hester had told colleagues that Ms Abbott made him “want to hate all black women” and said she “should be shot”.

Ms Kuenssberg told the PM that a viewer, who said he was a black man, had written in: “I was appalled at the way that Sunak was described. However, to me, his stance on racism hasn’t been completely zero tolerance.”

She continued: “And he wanted us to ask you, why did you refuse to return the money of a Conservative Party donor, Frank Hester, who was accused of making racist remarks about Diane Abbott?”

The PM responded: “At the time I called out those remarks as racist. Frank Hester apologised, expressed genuine contrition about what happened. And I think it’s reasonable when someone is genuinely contrite about what’s happened and accept what they’ve done is wrong, then that apology is accepted.”

Mr Sunak gave a powerful response after undercover footage last week showed a Reform UK activist describing the PM as a “p***”. Mr Sunak used the sickening word in a broadcast interview on Friday as he voiced his horror.

He told Ms Kuenssberg: “I think anyone who comes into politics is ready to accept a degree of criticism. That comes with the territory, and that’s fine. But in this instance, you know, what was said was deeply inappropriate and racist, and I did it (repeated the word) deliberately.

“I hated doing it, but I thought it was important to say it, to call out what it was.”

Mr Sunak claimed there had been “no remorse”. After the clip came to light, Mr Farage said he was “dismayed”, but has since accused Channel 4 of a “set-up”. The broadcaster rejected his claim.

The Prime Minister told Ms Kuenssberg: “Nigel Farage has just described these comments as inappropriate. They’re not inappropriate, they were vile and racist and wrong. But he’s only said that they’re inappropriate.

“The person who made them has only apologised to the Reform Party for the impact it’s had on them. It’s a very clear difference that there’s no contrition or remorse and or acceptance of what’s happened in that case.”

Undercover footage broadcast by Channel 4 News on Thursday showed Reform UK activist Andrew Parker saying the party should “kick Muslims out of mosques and turn them into Wetherspoons ”. He also said that army recruits should use asylum seekers crossing the Channel as “target practice”.

And he used the vile slur about the Prime Minister. It later emerged that Mr Parker is an actor – but he told GB News he is primarily a property developer and he does a small amount of acting on the side.

On a campaign visit to a school in Teesside on Friday, Mr Sunak told broadcasters: “My two daughters have to see and hear Reform people who campaign to Nigel Farage calling me an effing p***.”

Latest Electoral Commission records, released last month, reveal that the Conservatives accepted £5million from The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), the Leeds-based firm owned by Mr Hester, in January. And it also took a further £150,000 in March – the month his comments came to light.

Ms Abbott said at the time: “Conservatives should be ashamed taking a further £5million from Hester when Sunak had (belatedly) admitted his remarks about me were racist.”

Mr Hester apologised when reports of his comments were first reported by The Guardian. A TPP spokesperson said: “Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin.

“The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism, not least because he experienced it as the child of Irish immigrants in the 1970’s. He rang Diane Abbott twice today to try to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her, and is deeply sorry for his remarks. He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life.”