Labour’s Butler condemned for praising group’s ‘excellent work’
A LABOUR MP has been condemned after praising Extinction Rebellion for its “excellent work” after the group blocked the printworks of most of Britain’s major newspapers.
Dawn Butler, the MP for Brent, tweeted applause for the attack on the free press, after the blockade meant many were unable to receive their newspapers, including The Daily Tele
graph, yesterday morning.
Some questioned whether she would be sanctioned by the Labour leadership for her tweet, which was hastily deleted after she received thousands of angry replies.
Angela Richardson, the Conservative MP for Guildford, responded, tweeting: “Anyone who applauds this behaviour genuinely fails to understand the gravity of this action. It’s utterly unacceptable.”
Michael Fabricant, the Conservative MP for Lichfield, said: “Dawn Butler applauds the blocking of roads and the stopping of newspapers from being distributed. So, Keir Starmer,, do you agree with her???? (She’s now deleted her tweet, but here it is for all to see).”
Nadine Dorries, the health minister, added: “They prevented a blue light ambulance carrying an emergency from reaching St Thomas A+E because ER blocked the bridge and access. Are you serious?”
Labour did not comment on her tweet, but sources said the order to delete it did not come from Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader.
Jo Stevens, the shadow culture secretary, said the party disagreed with the action taken by the activists. She said: “A free press is vital for our democracy. People have the right to read the newspapers they want. Stopping them from being distributed and printers from doing their jobs is wrong.”
Emily Thornberry, the shadow international trade secretary, also criticised the action. She told Times Radio: “This is very worrying and I don’t really know what it is that is expected to be achieved and I know that for many older listeners it’s very much part of their daily life, getting their paper delivered, and I think it’s just wrong”.
More than 100 protesters used vehicles and bamboo lock-ons to block roads outside the printing works at Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, and Knowsley, near Liverpool.
The presses print the Rupert Murdoch-owned News UK titles including The Sun, The Times, The Sun on Sunday
and The Sunday Times, as well as The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph, the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, and the London Evening Standard.
Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, branded the Extinction Rebellion demonstration as an “attack on democracy”.