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Lee Anderson offered a blunt response to journalists quizzing him on his future as he walked out of a building in London on Tuesday 27 February.The former Tory deputy chairman was suspended from the party after he refused to apologise for remarks that sparked an Islamophobia row.“What are you waiting here for?” he asked reporters after being questioned about joining Reform UK.He also refused to answer when asked again if he would like to apologise for his comments, or if Rishi Sunak was right to suspend him.Instead, Mr Anderson got straight into his car. More

Tory MPs, including prime minister Rishi Sunak and his deputy Oliver Dowden, have refused to explicitly describe Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan as Islamophobic.The Ashfield MP received widespread criticism and had the Tory whip suspended after claiming the London mayor is being controlled by “Islamists”.Mr Anderson has refused to apologise and insisted he will be standing at the next election.Mr Sunak described Mr Anderson’s comments as “wrong” but he and a string of his colleagues have not explicitly said whether the remarks were Islamophobic or racist. More

Illegal Migration minister Michael Tomlinson repeatedly refused to say whether comments made by Lee Anderson about London mayor Sadiq Khan were Islamophobic.Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Tuesday (27 February), Richard Madeley asked Mr Tomlinson: “Was it Islamophobic?”Mr Tomlinson replied: “It was wrong.”“Was it Islamophobic?”, Mr Madeley asked.“It was wrong,” Mr Tomlinson replied.Mr Madeley said: “Every single minister we have spoken to refuses to use the word Islamophobia. Is this some instruction you have been given?”Susanna Reid then asked: “Are you allergic to the word Islamophobic?” More

Nick Ferrari cut a Tory minister’s interview short after he refused to say whether Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan were Islamophobic.The Ashfield MP received widespread criticism and had the Tory whip suspended after claiming the London mayor is being controlled by “Islamists”.Mr Anderson has refused to apologise and insisted he will be standing at the next election.When asked for the third time if Mr Anderson’s comments were Islamophobic, illegal migration minister Michael Tomlinson said “it was wrong,” prompting Mr Ferrari to curtail the interview. More

Lee Anderson has insisted he will not apologise over his remarks about London mayor Sadiq Khan which sparked an Islamophobia row within the Conservative party.The Ashfield MP was suspended over the weekend after he claimed “Islamists” had “got control” of Mr Khan and London.Appearing on GB News on Monday (26 February), Mr Anderson said: “I am not going to apologise while I have got a breath in my body, the comments I made were not racist at all.” More

Lee Anderson has said that Conservative MPs have privately offered him support after his support over his comments about Sadiq Khan.The Ashfield MP received widespread criticism and had the Tory whip suspended after claiming the London mayor is being controlled by “Islamists”.Mr Anderson told GB News that he has had WhatsApp messages from colleagues in the House of Commons but would not reveal their identities.When asked if he had support from Tory MPs, Anderson said: “Yeah, there’s no Labour MPs. They’re calling for me to be stripped of the whip forever.” More

Transport Secretary Mark Harper refused to label Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan as “racist”.Mr Anderson’s suspension following his comments about Mr Khan has today sparked wider debate over Tory Islamophobia.Sky News presenter Kay Burley asked Mr Harper repeatedly if Mr Anderson’s comments were “racist” during Monday’s show (26 February)Mr Harper replied: “What he said was wrong”.“You say it was wrong. Was it racist?”, the presenter repeated.Failing to answer yes or no, Mr Harper replied: “What he said was wrong and wasn’t true. He shouldn’t have said them.” More

Lee Anderson’s comments about Sadiq Khan were “unambiguously racist, Islamophobic, divisive and damaging,” Labour’s party chair has said.Anneliese Dodds told Sky News on Monday (26 February) she has written to the Conservative Party chairs seven times over the past three years calling for them to take action against Islamophobia in the party.The former Tory deputy chair lost the Conservative whip after failing to apologise for claiming “Islamists” had “got control” of the London mayor and the capital city.The prime minister “acted when it appeared no apology was going to be forthcoming,” Dodds added. More