Zia Yusuf immediately failed a challenge set for him by an audience member on Question Time.
Reform’s head of policy was on the panel for Thursday’s programme from Shrewsbury, alongside Labour MP James Murray, Tory MP Nigel Huddleston, Green leader Zack Polanski and Telegraph columnist Annabel Dunham.
The first question the panel were asked related to Robert Jenrick’s leaked comments regarding the Birmingham area of Handsworth.
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In a recording obtained by the Guardian, Jenrick described the neighbourhood as “one of the worst-integrated places” because he didn’t see “another white face” during a visit.
Predictably, Reform’s Yusuf hit out at immigration, pointing to polling which shows it to be the number one issue for voters and spoke of “massive issues with integration.”
When it was time to get some questions from the audience though, the majority condemned Jenrick’s comments about integration and spoke positively about immigration.
This included one man who said Yusuf’s words about immigration were a “generalisation” and a “polarised thing to say.”
He continued: “The British public deserve better than that. The vast majority of people in this country live very happily and very peacefully together.”
After hitting out at Tory austerity, instead of immigration, for the reason areas such as Handsworth may be struggling, the man had a challenge for Yusuf.
“Mr Yusuf, tonight you will say everything is about immigration,” he said. “I challenge you not to mention the word immigration tonight, because not everything in this country is the problem of immigration.”
Immediately, Yusuf said the word ‘immigration.’
Many praised the audience member, with one person writing: “Big up the man in the checked shirt.”
Another said: “Absolutely spot on from this man, more push back required against this constant immigration/asylum narrative… thats all Reform have, that’s it… they want division, they want hate & it won’t stop at immigration… they will go through the minority groups as well.”