The scandal involves UK ruling party councilors and officials who were reportedly part of a messaging group called ‘Trigger Me Timbers’
Several Labour Party MPs and a health minister have been ousted in the UK after being caught up in a scandal over leaked chats allegedly containing offensive and abusive messages in a constituency WhatsApp group.
Health Minister Andrew Gwynne was dismissed on Saturday after media reports exposed a series of sexist and racist messages he had sent while being part of a WhatsApp group ‘Trigger Me Timbers’ that included Labour councilors, party officials, and at least one other MP.
The minister allegedly made anti-Semitic remarks and “joked” about a pensioner voter, expressing hope that she would die before the next election. Gwynne, the Gorton and Denton MP, was suspended by the Labour Party after the allegations came to light.
Three Labour councilors – Claire Reid, Jack Naylor, and George Newton – along with MP Oliver Ryan, who used to be Gwynne’s assistant, have also resigned and been suspended by the party.
In one of the comments the minister reportedly insulted a pensioner who had written to a local councilor complaining about bin collections.
Gwynne suggested the councilor respond: “Dear resident, F*** your bins. I’m re-elected and without your vote. Screw you. PS: Hopefully you’ll have croaked it by the all-outs,” HuffPost cited a leaked message. “All-outs” is a reference to council elections where all seats are contested simultaneously, typically every four years.
The health minister also reportedly made racist comments about Labour MP Diane Abbott and sexist remarks about Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and has joked about a constituent being “mown down” by a truck.
Speaking to Sky News on Sunday, British Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook called the remarks “unacceptable.”
“What the public can take from the way the prime minister [Keir Starmer] has acted decisively in this case to dismiss Andrew Gwynne is that if any other Labour MP or minister falls short he will act to uphold the highest standards in public office,” he said.
Gwynne expressed deep regret over his “badly misjudged comments” and apologized for any offense caused.
Burnley MP Oliver Ryan’s punishment was handed down just 48 hours after Gwynne was dismissed. Ryan was investigated after allegedly mocking a fellow Labour MP over his sexuality.
A Labour Party spokesperson told reporters that Ryan has been suspended from the Party as part of the investigation into the WhatsApp group.
Opinion polls indicate a decline in Labour’s popularity since its landslide victory last year, as the party struggles to maintain support amid stalled efforts to drive economic growth.
A YouGov voting intention poll revealed last week that a quarter of British voters would back Nigel Farage’s right-wing Reform UK party ahead of Labour in a general election.
