Labour MP O’Mara must ‘get on and represent his constituency’
LABOUR MP Jared O’Mara must now “engage fully” with his job and represent his Sheffield Hallam seat after being reinstated to the party following a suspension for a series of homophobic, racist and misogynistic online remarks, a colleague has said.
Mr O’Mara is yet to make a maiden speech in the House of Commons since ousting Sir Nick Clegg in the June 2017 General Election. The 36-year-old MP, who is paid more than £74,000 a year, made an unreserved apology when he was suspended in October for the comments he made online in his early 20s, blaming the “lad culture” he grew up with where the language was considered normal.
Last week, a disputes panel hearing held by the party ruled that Mr O’Mara should be issued with a formal warning and attend mandatory training.
Hull North MP Diana Johnson said her party’s disciplinary process had taken too long, and told Mr O’Mara has to “get on and represent the constituency”. She told BBC One’s
“Clearly misogyny, sexism, racism has no place in the Labour Party.
“And so I’m sure that Jared will have reflected on that, will as I understand it be undertaking some training as well, and I’m sure that when he comes back to Parliament he will want to engage fully as a Member of Parliament for his constituency.”
But Conservative MP Andrea Jenkyns, who represents Morley and Outwood, said Labour were “hypocritical” for reinstating him after criticising Toby Young, who was forced to step down from the board of university regulator the Office for Students over controversial online comments.
Mr O’Mara was a member of the Jeremy Corbyn-backing grassroots campaign group Momentum when he was elected.
Ms Jenkyns claimed: “That’s the problem with the Labour Party, the Momentum-type candidates like Jared are taking over your party.”