Burnham urges Reform UK to act after ITV reports racist remarks by members
Andy Burnham called for immediate action after ITV reported racist remarks by Reform UK members and councillors. The party says it is investigating cases and has suspended some members.
Andy Burnham urged Reform UK on 15 October to take ‘immediate and firm action’ after ITV reported racist remarks by party members and councillors in undercover footage in Britain. Reform says it is investigating a number of cases and has suspended some members, putting the party’s response to its representatives under scrutiny.
The Evening Standard, in a report credited to PA Wire, said the footage included a reference to Black children as ‘animals’ and a member describing an area as ‘infested’ with Asian families. The remarks were reported from ITV’s undercover investigation ahead of the documentary’s scheduled broadcast.
Reform UK investigates members shown in ITV footage
Reform said there was ‘no room for racism’ in the party and that it dealt appropriately with people who said or did bad things, according to the Evening Standard. The Daily Mirror reported that the party was investigating several cases, had suspended some members and said due process should be followed.
The Mirror also reported allegations from the footage involving councillors Alan Feeney and Dean Miller, as well as sexual remarks attributed to councillor Chris Whelan. The Evening Standard reported that Solihull Council confirmed Whelan had resigned as a councillor. The reported remarks remain allegations arising from the footage, while the resignation is a separate status update confirmed by the council.
Nigel Farage said Reform was carrying out vetting, but argued that people could not be vetted for what they might say in the future, the Evening Standard reported. He also described ITV’s investigation as politically motivated. His response addressed questions about the party’s screening of candidates and members following the reported remarks.
Badenoch rejects deals with Reform UK
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the reported comments showed why her party would not make deals with Reform, according to the Evening Standard. She said Reform voters were being let down by the politicians representing them. Her comments brought the reported conduct into the debate over whether other parties would work with Reform’s representatives.
ITV’s 90-minute documentary, ‘Undercover: A Year In Reform,’ is scheduled for Sunday 18 October at 10.20pm on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player, the Mirror reported. Its broadcast is the next scheduled opportunity for viewers to see the footage behind the remarks reported so far.
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Sources and context
- ‘Reform UK should take immediate action against racism’, Burnham saysEvening Standard (PA Wire credit; article by David Lynch)
- Farage accused of ‘protecting’ candidate his own team called ‘a bit of a racist’Daily Mirror (Alexander Brown and Dave Burke)
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.