He may be the new Deputy Chair of the Conservatives, but Lee Anderson is also something of a one-man controversy magnet for his party. The MP for Ashfield finds himself in hot water yet again this week, after his links to a group of alleged white supremacists were made public.
Lee Anderson and the white supremacists – what’s the story?
Anderson has previously described members of the Skegby Scooter Club as ‘real salt of the earth people’, who make him ‘feel proud to be Ashfield born and bred’. However, as highlighted by The Mirror, senior members of the group have been identified as ‘neo-Nazis’
Nathan Bratby, Martin Dudley, Paul Reeson have all been pictured with Mr. Anderson. Between the three of them, they have expressed their support for pro-Hitler bands like Skrewdriver and Whitelaw, while also donning clothes that carry ‘white pride’ messages.
More controversy for 30p Lee
The association is damning for Lee Anderson, who is no stranger to contentious headlines. Nicknamed ’30p Lee’ for his opinions on cheap cooking items, he switched allegiances from Labour to Conservative in 2017. Two years later, he was elected as part of the Red Wall cohort.
In recent months, Anderson has become a prominent figure within the ruling party, culminating with his appointment as Deputy Chair just a few days ago. However, it’s unclear how long he was last in this position – and calls for his head have now intensified.
Who is calling for Lee Anderson’s head?
- LBC host Sangita Myska has called upon Rishi Sunak to take decisive action over the matter:
“If Britain’s first South Asian Prime Minister Rishi Sunak fails to sack his new Deputy Tory Party Chairman Lee Anderson for associating with Far Right white supremacists sympathisers – he should be ashamed of himself. Anderson should resign. But he won’t.” | Sangita Myska
- Meanwhile, prospective Labour Councillor Ash Singh has echoed these sentiments:
“Sunak has very rapidly gone to a very dark place in public life, first as Chancellor and now as Prime Minister. It was his decision to hire Lee Anderson. But if he doesn’t fire him for this, it is a stain against his character.” | Ash Singh
- Former Labour leader of Harlow Council, Mark Ingall, fears that the PM won’t intervene:
“Senior Conservative Lee Anderson is not a working class Tory, he’s a hard right racist, a fascist who, years ago, would have been at home in the National Front. But Sunak is hostage to the extremists and is too weak to sack them” | Mark Ingall