Robert Jenrick ‘should be sacked’ after saying he’s a ‘great admirer’ of a far right X account, Muslim Council says
The Muslim Council of Britain has said Robert Jenrick needs to be “sacked” from the shadow cabinet after The London Economic revealed he is a “great admirer” of Inevitable West, a far-right X account with over 130,000 followers.
A Labour MP has also rebuked Robert Jenrick, saying it is “very concerning that a man with those views is the Tory pick for justice secretary.”
In leaked messages to the far right account, the shadow justice secretary said: “I am a great admirer of your tweets. You are right to hold me to account, like any politician. I think we agree however on what needs to happen.”
Zara Mohammed, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said: “It seems impossible for Mr Jenrick to have not seen the regular Islamophobic and far-right hate posted by this account. Yet he has declared himself a great admirer and agrees with its far-right views on what needs to happen next.
“With the scale of Islamophobia endemic within the Conservative Party, and recently being propagated by some of the most powerful figures in the world, Ms Badenoch cannot allow what appears to be support for such Islamophobic and extreme content from a member of her shadow cabinet.
“This is an immediate test of Ms Badenoch’s leadership in addressing Islamophobia. Mr Jenrick must be sacked given the clear breach of the Nolan principles, and an investigation must be launched into his record of Islamophobia in recent years.”
Labour MP Oliver Ryan told The London Economic: “It’s a horrible message to spread at this time of year, and it’s certainly not very Christian! It’s pandering to extremists and more importantly, it’s very concerning that a man with those views is the Tory pick for justice secretary.”
The Labour Muslim Network has called Mr Jenrick’s remarks “shocking,” adding “Robert Jenrick’s position is no longer tenable. The @MuslimCouncil is right to call for his removal.
“Muslim communities face unprecedented levels of violent and non-violent hate crime, we cannot tolerate it at the highest levels of government.”
Robert Jenrick has not commented on how much of the account he agrees with, but Inevitable West regularly posts far-right and Islamophobic content.
Last week, Inevitable West said: “Raid the mosques. Ban the Quran. Carry out mass deportations. Our patience has officially expired.”
On Friday, the far right account posted about the German Market attacks and asked, “Why is the far-right surging in Europe?
“Because we don’t want Christmas markets being a life-threatening event.”
Mr Jenrick also took to X to comment on the attack, writing that the “public deserve politicians who will implement the policies necessary so they can attend Christmas markets in safety.” He added: “End mass migration. Revoke visas and deport those who hate us. Show no tolerance for extremists. We don’t have to live like this.”
It has been reported that the attacker, Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, held “Islamaphobic” views and expressed sympathy for the far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the past.
The Muslim Council of Britain is submitting an official complaint to the Conservative Party regarding Mr Jenrick’s conduct.
Robert Jenrick’s spokesperson has declined to comment.