Should Lucy Powell resign?

[Imnobody4]

I agree with every word in Brendan O'Neill's article about Lucy Powell's disgraceful attitude on Any Questions. This was not misspeaking it was a mask slipping.
I'm shocked.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-ugly-truth-about-lucy-powells-grooming-gangs-comments/

This isn't even close to an apology.

https://x.com/LucyMPowell/status/1918723444918661357?t=JKfnXO5ZtjGDtKVOlyj8aw&s=19

In the heat of a discussion on AQ, I would like to clarify that I regard issues of child exploitation & grooming with the utmost seriousness. I’m sorry if this was unclear. I was challenging the political point scoring around it, not the issue itself. As a constituency MP I’ve dealt with horrendous cases. This Gvt is acting to get to the truth, and deliver justice.

Also, why can’t it be brought up on the radio? Why do you think people listen to politicians in the media? Why is anyone interested in what the party in government have to say about anything? Weird deflection.

Starmer supporting her publicly is because Labour are knee deep in this! They don't want a national enquiry because Labour MPs are culpable. It could bring down the party
They are beyond contempt and how the hell people can stick up for them beggars belief. Sadly core Labour supporters will just deny, deny, deny and call anyone who opposes them on this "far right".

Sadly core Labour supporters will just deny, deny, deny and call anyone who opposes them on this "far right".
Has this been posted on the thread?
If it's pointed at me, it might be useful to know that I haven't supported Labour for a long time, but do carry on with projecting, if that makes you feel better.
And of course this can be discussed on the radio. But in the middle of a 45 minute programme of general questions? Surely
the gravity of the subject deserves more?

Wasn't pointed at anyone on particular, just any reply from Labour/their supporters when challenged.

Maybe Gordon Brown had more canny spin doctors but I don't think the party has gone backwards. I think the party has always viewed women as lesser beings, whose concerns were risible and not worthy of respect by serious politicians (aka men). We just hadn't recognised this fact. Nimco Ali, amazing campaigner against FGM, said she wrote to Ken Livingstone prior to 2008 (when he was the Labour candidate for Mayor of London), highlighting the outrage of FGM, his reply was, "We'll have to see how this plays out in the Mosques!" Not a second thought for the mutilated female children!
Approx 13 minutes in on this interview.
BBC News - Political Thinking with Nick Robinson, Series 1, The Nimco Ali One

I think the fallout from the takeover of woman's rights by the trans idealogues has made us much more aware of the left wing's contempt and disregard for women and girls but it has always existed.

Labour need to use this for anything they don’t want to discuss.

It’s not working for them.

And the way to stop it being a 'dog-whistle' is to NOT talk about in public? Keep it sequestered on whatever channel broadcasts proceedings in the H of C? Keep it away from the radio-listening plebs?

Really? When all the various parties struggling to sweep it under the carpet is exactly why Reform will be able to make hay with it? Two-tier Kier and all that?

She could have so easily said, 'While I disagree with you on many things, I do agree that grooming gangs are clearly an ongoing issue that must be tackled. I know that Muslim girls, as well as white girls, have been affected by this, and ALL vulnerable young people...etc etc' She could have mentioned that men of all ethnicities have been involved in this sort of thing, and that it's illegal whoever has been doing it.

But no. 'Little trumpet.' 'Dog whistle.' She gave the overwhelming impression that protecting the groomers lest publicity for their behaviour should reflect badly on their communities is MUCH more important than protecting girls, of whatever colour.

I don't often get really angry about something political (usually it's just a low simmer of frustrated irritation) but this has got to me.

I think you might not have read my last 2 posts

This is how she and her colleagues feel about the subject: utter contempt and the worst kind of selling out of (white) girls.
All because Labour court the votes of the many, many Muslims, in their safe seats.

What’s a few dead kids, eh, when your constituents are Muslims, and you’re dependent on their votes.

None of the sentence slipped out, or she misspoke.
She’s a cunt, and should resign.
Her ‘apology’ was mealy mouthed and insincere.
If she, or Starmer actually cared, she’d resign.

And the dismissive ‘little’ trumpet.
Oh, what a trifling nuisance this subject is.

Just bat it away like a tiny, and irritating midge, that’s in your face.

Why do we suppose the Conservative party didn't make hay with this issue during the long long time it was in power? After all, as another has pointed out, much of this did go on in Labour-led county councils, and was ignored. Could it be because Labour would have taken the Tories to task with its euthanasia policies towards the elderly in Tory strongholds like Surrey, seen at its zenith during lockdown? I think so.

Currently it seems that at a local level, if you vote Labour they will pimp out your daughter and if you vote Conservative they'll kill your grandparent - hardly an edifying choice, eh?

Incidentally, I think Sir Keir is up to his neck in this as he was head of the CPS when a lot of this was going on, and it does seem the CPS was going after celebrities like Sir Cliff Richard and BBC DJ Paul Gambaccuni over what turned out to be baseless allegations of paedophilia, any routine checks would have exposed the claims as a nonsense no pun intended but they were hanging in there... it does look like a classic State misdirection trick, don't look at the allegations against us, focus on these people instead!

After this, Paul Gambuccuni who had been an enthusiastic proponent of New Labour quit the party in disgust.

Yes, that’s exactly what they do.

This. She’s contemptible.

I cross-posted with one - and I don't agree with you there.

And I think you've entirely dodged my point about how Lucy P should have handled this.

I think there is a real issue about how vulnerable children are othered. They are much seen as less than so the treatment of them as sub-human isn’t surprising. It’s problematic now it’s out in the open and all those government agencies who should of been protecting them turned a blind eye.

I personally would really toughen up the law on under 16s having sex. Possibly with a Romeo / Juliet clause for under 18s but anyone 18+ having sex with an under 16 should be doing prison time imo.

We'll have to see how this plays out in the Mosques!" Not a second thought for the mutilated female children!

Matthew Syed appeared on Triggernometry to discuss cousin marriage, immigration and diversity.

In the section about cousin marriage (19:18) he made some assertions about findings in UK Biobank that he claims were withdrawn. It leads into a discussion about the corruption of science and (Plato’s) noble lie. But at the heart of it are children and vulnerable people who are harmed. For politicians, it seems only too easy to disregard them as collateral damage in a wider political landscape.

@LizzieSiddal , so do you think she should resign? You don’t seem to have answered the question.

100% this.

It can only be accused of being a political dog whistle if labour are uniquely implicated and know it.

Otherwise its not a political dog whistle, is it?

What a horrible thing to say and even the apology sounds strained. As others have said it’s probably because that is what she really thinks and Starmer doesn’t want any more enquiries because he was DPP at the time and there might be questions, quotes or emails where he said something that he might not wish to come out now.

What a mess and those poor girls.

Ah but Angela Raynor is the sort of woman who mouths the correct slogans, so that is alright: she could never be accused of wrong-think. “Trans women’s rights are women’s rights’’ she insisted.

That aged well.