Blackadder
COMEDIAN Rowan Atkinson yesterday sprang to Boris Johnson’s defence in the row over his views on women wearing burkas.
The Blackadder star, a campaigner for free speech, said Mr Johnson’s quip that women with veiled faces looked like letter boxes was a “pretty good” joke and he had nothing to apologise for.
In a letter to a newspaper Atkinson said: “As a lifelong beneficiary of the freedom to make jokes about religion, I do think that Boris Johnson’s joke about wearers of the burka resembling letter boxes is a pretty good one.
“All jokes about religion cause offence, so it’s pointless apologising for them.
“You should really only apologise for a bad joke. On that basis, no apology is required.”
The Daily Express has received hundreds of letters from readers, overwhelmingly in support of Mr Johnson.
In addition more than 4,000 readers responded to a phone poll demanding that the burka is banned in the UK, something Mr Johnson was arguing against.
In light of the huge public support for the former foreign secretary, Tory Party Chairman Brandon Lewis faces growing fury in party ranks and even calls from senior figures to resign over his handling of the affair which started with him demanding an apology and could now see Mr Johnson summoned to a disciplinary hearing.
There was speculation yesterday the party could send Mr Johnson for “diversity training” rather than face harsher punishment, to defuse the row if he is found to have broken its code of conduct on fostering “respect and tolerance”.
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said: “My general view is I don’t think that an internal party system should be there to shut down MPs when they speak.”
Another Conservative former Cabinet minister said: “The party’s code is a legal process that must be conducted fairly and confidentially in accordance with natural justice.
“With his briefing, leaking and off-the-record chats with other MPs, Brandon Lewis has made a mockery of the whole system. His reckless behaviour means the process cannot now be fair.
“This attack on Boris must be abandoned before more harm is done to our party by the party chairman – and Lewis needs to consider his own position given his disastrous role in this fiasco.”
Complaints to the party about Mr Johnson are to be considered and could lead to a full-scale inquiry by a special panel.
But Mr Johnson’s critics got fresh ammunition when the Equality and Human Rights Commission delivered a damning verdict on his choice of language.
Chief executive Rebecca Hilsenrath said: “The effectiveness of our democratic society depends on freedom of expression and the expression of offensive and intolerant opinions is generally not unlawful.
“Boris Johnson’s use of language in this instance, which risks dehumanising and vilifying Muslim women, is inflammatory and divisive. Political figures should lead by example, conducting debates in a responsible manner and language such as this can inhibit legitimate dialogue.”
The burka covers the whole face whereas the eyes remain visible on the niqab.
The Tory leadership took some comfort in an opinion poll showing the party has widened its lead over Labour despite the row.
A YouGov survey of 1,675 people found 39 per cent would vote Tory in a general election, up one from two weeks before. Labour support was down three, on 35 per cent.