This video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.By Sam FrancisPolitical reporter, BBC NewsA senior cabinet minister has denied the Conservative Party has a problem with race after accepting at least £10m from a donor who is accused of racism.Transport Secretary Mark Harper said he was part of “the most ethnically diverse cabinet there has ever been”.Mr Harper said his party welcomes members “whatever their race”.Donor Frank Hester apologised after reportedly saying ex-Labour MP Diane Abbott made him want to “hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.The party has refused repeated calls to return Mr Hester’s money, despite labelling his alleged comments as “racist” and “wrong”.PM pressured over new funds from racism accused donorI won’t return money from donor accused of racism – PMAbbott calls Tory donor’s comments frighteningWhen asked on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme if the Tory party has “a problem with race”, Mr Harper said: “Absolutely not.”As the prime minister said this week we are party proudly led by the first Britain Asian prime minister.”He said the current cabinet is “the most ethnically diverse cabinet there has ever been”.”We are a party that welcomes people from across the UK whatever their background, whatever their race, if they share our values and approach to politics,” he added. Mr Harper argued that “we should accept” Mr Hester’s apology.But former Downing Street advisor Samuel Kasumu said he was disappointed in Mr Harper’s argument.Having the “most diverse cabinet in history “was not a “get out of jail free card” on race issues, Mr Kasumu said.The former advisor to Boris Johnson has been a frequent critic of Conservative Party’s approach to race since leaving government in a row over a racism report.Paraphrasing Martin Luther King’s famous speech at the March on Washington, Mr Kasumu said: “It is not the colour of your skin that matters when it comes to tackling racism, discrimination and bringing communities together – it has to be the content of your character and your willingness to lead.”Mr Kasumu added “some of our most divisive politicians are people like Suella Braverman,” the former home secretary who is of Indian descent. Still ‘a problem’The Guardian reports that Mr Hester made remarks about Ms Abbott while criticising a female executive at another organisation during a meeting at his company’s headquarters in 2019.The newspaper reported that he went on to say: “It’s like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you’re just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she’s there, and I don’t hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot.”Mr Hester, an IT executive, apologised for making “rude” comments about Ms Abbott but said his remarks “had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.In a social media post, Mr Hester later said he “abhors racism”, which he described as a “poison that has no place in public life”.The Guardian’s investigation has led to a week of political backlash against Mr Hester, forcing Ms Abbott into the centre of a debate around racism in politics. In an article Ms Abbott, who now sits as an independ …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnThis video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.By Sam FrancisPolitical reporter, BBC NewsA senior cabinet minister has denied the Conservative Party has a problem with race after accepting at least £10m from a donor who is accused of racism.Transport Secretary Mark Harper said he was part of “the most ethnically diverse cabinet there has ever been”.Mr Harper said his party welcomes members “whatever their race”.Donor Frank Hester apologised after reportedly saying ex-Labour MP Diane Abbott made him want to “hate all black women” and that she “should be shot”.The party has refused repeated calls to return Mr Hester’s money, despite labelling his alleged comments as “racist” and “wrong”.PM pressured over new funds from racism accused donorI won’t return money from donor accused of racism – PMAbbott calls Tory donor’s comments frighteningWhen asked on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme if the Tory party has “a problem with race”, Mr Harper said: “Absolutely not.”As the prime minister said this week we are party proudly led by the first Britain Asian prime minister.”He said the current cabinet is “the most ethnically diverse cabinet there has ever been”.”We are a party that welcomes people from across the UK whatever their background, whatever their race, if they share our values and approach to politics,” he added. Mr Harper argued that “we should accept” Mr Hester’s apology.But former Downing Street advisor Samuel Kasumu said he was disappointed in Mr Harper’s argument.Having the “most diverse cabinet in history “was not a “get out of jail free card” on race issues, Mr Kasumu said.The former advisor to Boris Johnson has been a frequent critic of Conservative Party’s approach to race since leaving government in a row over a racism report.Paraphrasing Martin Luther King’s famous speech at the March on Washington, Mr Kasumu said: “It is not the colour of your skin that matters when it comes to tackling racism, discrimination and bringing communities together – it has to be the content of your character and your willingness to lead.”Mr Kasumu added “some of our most divisive politicians are people like Suella Braverman,” the former home secretary who is of Indian descent. Still ‘a problem’The Guardian reports that Mr Hester made remarks about Ms Abbott while criticising a female executive at another organisation during a meeting at his company’s headquarters in 2019.The newspaper reported that he went on to say: “It’s like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you’re just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she’s there, and I don’t hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot.”Mr Hester, an IT executive, apologised for making “rude” comments about Ms Abbott but said his remarks “had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.In a social media post, Mr Hester later said he “abhors racism”, which he described as a “poison that has no place in public life”.The Guardian’s investigation has led to a week of political backlash against Mr Hester, forcing Ms Abbott into the centre of a debate around racism in politics. In an article Ms Abbott, who now sits as an independ …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
