Labour's Karen Buck admits ethnic women comments 'careless' - Westminster North MP criticised for her Tory 'social cleansing' claim

Published: 25 March 2011
by JOSH LOEB

AN MP has admitted she regrets accusing the Conservatives of wanting to drive black and Muslim women from Westminster – but defended her assertion that ethnic minorities will be among those hit hardest by Tory policies.

Speaking at a small political meeting in Islington last week, Labour MP for Westminster North Karen Buck told an audience that ministers “do not want lower-income women, families, children, and above all, let us be very clear – because we know where the impact is hitting – they don’t want black women, they don’t want ethnic minority women and they don’t want Muslim women living in central London. They just don’t.”

Ms Buck has been criticised by Conservative Party chairwoman Baroness Warsi, who called her comments “deeply offensive” and suggested Labour leader Ed Miliband should sack her. 

This week Ms Buck told the West End Extra her wording had been “careless” but said London Mayor Boris Johnson had raised similar concerns by suggesting the government’s housing benefit cap would lead to a “Kosovo-style” cleansing.

She said: “I was less guarded in my use of language than I should have been and I’ve said that I was in error to imply a motive. 

“I’m not the first politician who has made a point that I can stand by but has made it in a way that when you look at it in cold print is not what I intended to say.

“The government’s own impact assessment says larger families and Asian, by which they mean Bangladeshi and minority communities, are particularly affected by the benefit cap.”

The Child Poverty Action Group recently launched a legal challenge against plans to cut housing benefit for private sector tenants, due due to come into force on April 1.

Ms Buck, 52, warned last year that the housing benefit cap would lead to “social cleansing on an unprecedented scale”.