By Enyichukwu Enemanna
UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has announced the dismissal of Health Minister Andrew Gwynne after a newspaper revealed that he had sent a series of offensive and abusive WhatsApp messages, insulting constituents, fellow MPs, and councillors.
The Prime Minister also suspended Gwynne, the MP for Denton and Gorton, from the Labour Party after the abusive messages were reported on Sunday.
Starmer was “determined to uphold high standards for those in public office” and “would not hesitate to take action against any minister who fails to meet these standards,” BBC quoted a government spokesperson as saying.
Gwynne said on X that he was sorry for any offence caused by the “badly misjudged” messages.
He added that he understood the Prime Minister and Labour’s decision and, “while very sad to have been suspended, will support them in any way I can.”
Sky News quoted Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook as saying that the WhatsApp messages were “completely unacceptable.”
“I haven’t seen the details of the specific WhatsApp conversations in question, but the comments Andrew Gwynne made, let’s be clear, are completely unacceptable,” he said.
The Prime Minister is “determined to uphold the highest standards in public office” and “has acted decisively to dismiss Andrew Gwynne for that reason,” Pennycook added.
A Labour spokesperson said Gwynne, 50, has been “administratively suspended” as a party member while an investigation is conducted into “comments made in this WhatsApp group in line with the Labour Party’s rules and procedures.”
“Swift action will be taken if individuals are found to have breached the high standards expected of them as Labour Party members,” the spokesperson added.
In messages seen by the Mail on Sunday, Gwynne said he hoped a 72-year-old woman would soon be dead after she wrote to her local councillor about bin collections.
The councillor shared the woman’s letter with Gwynne and other Labour figures in a WhatsApp group called Trigger Me Timbers, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper also said Gwynne joked about a constituent being “mown down” by a truck.
Gwynne reportedly posted sexist comments about Angela Rayner and racist remarks about Labour MP Diane Abbott.
The Conservatives said the messages showed there was a “rot” in the party that “needs fixing.”
“There is a clear contempt for pensioners in the Labour Party,” said Tory party co-chair Nigel Huddleston.
“Andrew Gwynne should not remain a member of the Labour Party – they need to act.”
