Leader of the House of Commons Lucy Powell has sought to clarify her remarks after she appeared to describe grooming gangs as a “dog whistle” issue, prompting a backlash from political opponents.
During a heated debate on BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions on Friday, commentator and Reform UK member Tim Montgomerie asked Powell if she had seen a recent Channel 4 documentary on grooming gangs.
Powell responded “oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now do we” and “let’s get that dog whistle out shall we”.
But on Saturday, the Labour minister said she regarded child exploitation and grooming with the “utmost seriousness”, adding: “I’m sorry if this was unclear.”
Powell said: “I was challenging the political point scoring around it, not the issue itself. As a constituency MP I’ve dealt with horrendous cases.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said politicians sometimes say things “in the heat of debate” that “come across badly”.
“She’s mortified and, you know, she does not want and would not want people who’ve campaigned on, or been victims of, these most appalling crimes to think she was in any way trying to undermine those experiences or those arguments,” he told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme.
During the political debate programme, Montgomerie was asked about Reform UK’s pledge to replicate the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) – including by cutting diversity and inclusions roles within councils, following its successes in Thursday’s local elections.
Montgomerie said the UK was “one of the most tolerant [countries] in the world”, but argued there “always needs to be more progress on racial issues”.
He said: “It’s not so much the amount of money that is spent on employing diversity officers.
“You talk to a lot of civil servants, the amount of time they now have to spend monitoring this issue [of diversity] above all others is an extraordinary diversion.”
Powell called his claims “absolutely rubbish”, and told Montgomerie to go and spend a day with council staff to “actually see what they’re dealing with”.
Montgomerie then asked Powell if she “saw the documentary on Channel 4 about rape gangs”, to which she responded: “Oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now do we. Let’s get that dog whistle out shall we.”
Channel 4 released Groomed: A National Scandal earlier this week.
The documentary features five women who recount the abuse they suffered at the hands of grooming gangs, which it said revealed failures by police and social services.
It elicited reaction from several high-profile Conservative figures, including former home secretary Suella Braverman and former prime minister Liz Truss. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has called for a national inquiry into grooming gangs.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on Wednesday there had already been an inquiry, the recommendations of which his government would implement. He told Parliament that Labour was “delivering truth and justice for victims”.
Labour peer Baroness Hazarika said she was “disgusted” by “sickening” stories of grooming gangs, adding: “Many of us in the Muslim community are absolutely as appalled as anyone else.”
Following Friday’s exchange on Any Questions, shadow home secretary Chris Philp called for Powell to resign over her remarks, which he said “belittles thousands of girls who were raped by grooming gangs over decades”.
Robert Jenrick, the shadow lord chancellor, said Powell’s comments were “a disgusting betrayal of the victims”.
A Reform UK spokesman said Powell’s “abhorrent comments truly demonstrate how out of touch the Labour Party is”.
He went on: “She does not take the mass rape of young girls by predominantly Pakistani men seriously. The mask has slipped.
“After these comments, Keir Starmer should consider if Lucy Powell is fit to serve.”
Powell said the comments were made “in the heat of a discussion” and the government was “acting to get to the truth, and deliver justice”.
The BBC understands that Downing Street accepts Powell’s apology and her explanation that her comments did not reflect her views on the issue.
