Shame on Prime Minister Boris Johnson as we see consequences of Savile slur on Sir Keir Starmer - The Yorkshire Post says

Scenes of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer being bundled into a police car and rushed from a mob of protesters near Parliament should deeply depress anyone concerned with the health of our politics.
Boris Johnson in Parliament. Picture: House of Commons/PA Wire.Boris Johnson in Parliament. Picture: House of Commons/PA Wire.
Boris Johnson in Parliament. Picture: House of Commons/PA Wire.

As ever, while democratic disagreement is sacrosanct in this country, violence or the threat of it have no place whatsoever.

What is significant in the footage, however, is that some surrounding Sir Keir, the former director of public prosecutions, can be heard shouting the name of Jimmy Savile and completely unfounded falsehoods about “protecting paedophiles”.

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It is clear, therefore, that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recent inaccurate slur in the House of Commons that Sir Keir had failed to prosecute Savile has had serious consequences.

Sir Keir Starmer. Photo by Ian Forsyth-Pool/Getty Images.Sir Keir Starmer. Photo by Ian Forsyth-Pool/Getty Images.
Sir Keir Starmer. Photo by Ian Forsyth-Pool/Getty Images.

As of yesterday, in yet another sign that he is unfit for the office he occupies, Mr Johnson had failed to apologise for his false claim.

This hasn’t washed with some critics in his own party, includingformer chief whip Julian Smith, Conservative MP for Skipton and Ripon, who said online that what happened to Sir Keir, who was with Opposition colleague David Lammy MP, was “appalling”, adding: “It is really important for our democracy and for his security that the false Savile slurs made against him are withdrawn in full.”

Also significant are the words of Labour MP for Batley and Spen, Kim Leadbeater, who as sister of the murdered Jo Cox knows intimately how horrific the results can be when legitimate discourse gives way to extremist hate.

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“These things don’t just happen,” she said. “Words have consequences, leaders have a duty to behave responsibly.”

That such misinformation is pushed not just by anonymous keyboard warriors on internet forums but by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in Parliament brings shame on this Government and the party upholding it.