Former Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has lambasted Labour MP Dawn Butler for her “race-baiting” comments about newly-elected Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch.
Speaking to GB News, Kwarteng criticised Butler’s sharing of a post that referred to Badenoch as “white supremacy in blackface”.
He called the remarks “completely crazy” and “insanity”, suggesting that Butler should have the whip removed.
He said: “On a personal level I’ve always got on with her, but her race-baiting is completely crazy.
Kwasi Kwarteng said that Butler should have her whip removed
GB News
“And you can imagine that if Kemi had lost, she would have said exactly the same thing. She would have said, ‘of course Kemi lost because the Tories are racist and Britain is racist’. Now that she’s won, she’s saying it was racist. I mean, this is insanity.”
GB News host Camilla Tominey said: “I think it’s quite insane to accuse a black person of being a white supremacist.”
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Kwarteng said: “In their logic, you know, they put everything through the prism of race-baiting and divisiveness.”
Camilla asked: “Well, if she’s a race baiter. Why is she still got the whip?”
He said: “Look, that’s up to Labour. I genuinely think that given what she said, she should have the whip removed from her. There should be some discipline and some disciplinary measure against this kind of really hateful device.”
He added: “You can see exactly how they think. Because if Rob let’s say, had won, they would have said exactly the same thing. They just said this is white supremacy or whatever. So everything that happens, they try and put through the same channel regardless of the circumstances.”
The post, originally from London-based Nigerian journalist Nels Abbey, referred to Badenoch as representing “white supremacy in blackface” and claimed her victory would be a “victory for racism”.
The controversy comes as Badenoch makes history as the first black leader of a Westminster party.
Butler has since removed the repost from her profile on X.
The post warned of “surviving the immediate surge of Badenochism” and cautioned against being “gaslit” by Badenoch’s victory.
Many took to social media after Butler removed the post to criticise the Labour MP, calling for Starmer to remove the whip.
Ben Obese-JectyIt, MP for Huntingdon, said: “It never takes much for Labour’s mask to slip. Dawn Butler is not alone on the Government benches in holding this view of Kemi.”
Conservative councillor Oliver Cooper added: “Dawn Butler thinks the most successful black woman in British history is racist against black people.”
