What did Lee Anderson say about Sadiq Khan? MP has Tory whip suspended for comments, what has Rishi Sunak said

Lee Anderson has refused to apologise for saying “Islamists” have “got control” of Sadiq Khan and London. The outspoken MP has been suspended suspended from the Conservative Party after the remarks, but today (26 February) he doubled down on his criticism of the Labour Mayor of London and said apologising "would be a sign of weakness".

Rishi Sunak said Anderson's comments “weren’t acceptable, they were wrong”, but both the Prime Minister and Transport Secretary Mark Harper declined to say this were racist or Islamophobic. Critics including the London mayor Khan and Tory peer Baroness Sayeeda Warsi hit out at Sunak for failing to explicitly condemn Anderson.

There has been some confusion as to why the Ashfield MP was suspended. Ministers previously said he was deprived of the whip because he did not apologise, while the Prime Minister appeared to go further by saying he was suspended because of his “unacceptable” comments.

But what did Lee Anderson say, and what has been the response from Khan and Sunak? Here is everything you need to know.

What did Lee Anderson say about Sadiq Khan?

Last week was one of the most fractious in Westminster in recent years, which saw Parliament descend into chaos over a row about the handling of a Commons vote on Gaza and concerns for MPs’ safety. Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle came under fire for allowing a Labour amendment to be voted on due to concern about MPs getting abuse and death threats from pro-Palestinian campaigners.

On Thursday (22 February), former Home Secretary Suella Braverman penned on op-ed for the Telegraph saying: "The truth is that the Islamists, the extremists and the anti-Semites are in charge now." She claimed: "We see their influence in our judiciary, our legal profession and our universities."

Then in an appearance on GB News on Friday (23 February), who pay Anderson £100,000-a-year as a presenter, the Ashfield MP said: “I don’t actually believe that the Islamists have got control of our country, but what I do believe is they’ve got control of Khan and they’ve got control of London… He’s actually given our capital city away to his mates.”

On Monday, Anderson refused to apologise, telling GB News: "If you are wrong, apologising is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength. But when you think you are right you should never apologise because to do so would be a sign of weakness."

And he doubled down on his attack on the Labour Mayor: "Khan has stood by and allowed our police to turn a blind eye to the disgusting scenes around Parliament. It is not my intention to upset anyone, I believe in free speech and have 100% respect for people of all backgrounds."

Khan, a Muslim, has been the Mayor of London since 2016, and is seeking re-election in May. Anderson previously said that asylum seekers can "f*** off back to France" and accused people using foodbanks of being bad at budgeting.

What did Sadiq Khan say about Lee Anderson?

Khan told Sky News on Saturday (24 February) that Anderson's comments were "Islamophobic" and "racist", and claimed the Prime Minister's silence showed there was “a hierarchy when it comes to racism”.

The Mayor of London said: “These comments from a senior Conservative are Islamophobic, are anti-Muslim and are racist. We’ve seen over the last two days confirmation that over the last few months there’s been an increase in anti-Muslim cases by more than 330%.

“These comments pour fuel on the fire of anti-Muslim hatred, and I’m afraid the deafening silence from Rishi Sunak and from the Cabinet is them condoning this racism, and I’m afraid it confirms to many people across the country that there’s a hierarchy when it comes to racism.

“I think it’s really important to call out anti-Semitism, it’s really important to call out misogyny, it’s really important to call out homophobia, but surely it must also be important to call out anti-Muslim hatred?"

Anderson's comments also provoked fury amongst Tory MPs. The claim was denounced as “foolish and dangerous” by Business Minister Nus Ghani and “ridiculous” by senior Tory backbencher Sir Sajid Javid.

Conservative peer Baroness Warsi, who has criticised her party’s handling of Islamophobia allegations in the past, said his comments were just “the tip of the iceberg” and the party must rid itself of “extremists”.

What has the government said?

Anderson was initially backed by a Conservative Party source on Friday, before he had the whip stripped on Saturday. This means he will now sit as an independent MP, unless he joins another party or is allowed to rejoin the Conservatives.

Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden appeared to indicate Anderson could be welcomed back into the fold on Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday (25 February). He said that the Ashfield MP would have kept the whip if he'd apologised, and said: "I don’t believe that Lee Anderson said those remarks intending to be Islamophobic."

Speaking to local BBC radio stations today (26 February), Rishi Sunak said: “I think it’s incumbent on all of us, especially those elected to Parliament, not to inflame our debates in a way that’s harmful to others. Lee’s comments weren’t acceptable, they were wrong. And that’s why he had the whip suspended.”

Sunak continued: “Clearly his choice of words wasn’t acceptable, it was wrong. Words matter, especially in the current environment where tensions are running high and I think it’s incumbent on all of us to choose them carefully."

Asked whether his party has an Islamophobia problem, the PM said: “No, of course it doesn’t”.

He added that it was “not a fair characterisation at all” to say he has condemned anti-Semitism while overlooking Islamophobia in his own party. “Racism or prejudice of any kind” is “completely unacceptable” and “not British”, he said.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper repeatedly refused to say whether Anderson's comments were racist of Islamophobic, instead saying they were "wrong".

Ralph Blackburn is NationalWorld’s politics editor based in Westminster, where he gets special access to Parliament, MPs and government briefings. If you liked this article you can follow Ralph on X (Twitter) here and sign up to his free weekly newsletter Politics Uncovered, which brings you the latest analysis and gossip from Westminster every Sunday morning.