UK’s Starmer sacks minister over ‘badly misjudged’ comments

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer gives an interview during a visit to Springfields (Preston Lab), National Nuclear Laboratory facility in Preston, north-west England on February 6, 2025. Britain’s labor government said on Thursday that changes to planning laws would speed up the country’s rollout of mini-nuclear reactors aimed at providing cheaper and cleaner energy. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / POOL / AFP)

LONDON, United Kingdom — A Labor Party lawmaker on Saturday said he regretted “badly misjudged” comments after UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer sacked him as a minister.

It is the latest bump in the road Starmer’s government has hit in its first seven months in power despite a landslide election victory in July 2024.

The premier dismissed Andrew Gwynne as a junior health minister as soon as he became aware of the comments, the domestic PA news agency said.

He has also been suspended from the Labor Party, with a report alleging that Gwynne made anti-Semitic, racist, and sexist remarks.

“I deeply regret my badly misjudged comments and apologize for any offense I’ve caused,” Gwynne said on X.

“I entirely understand the decisions the PM and the party have taken,” he added.

Gwynne posted messages in a WhatsApp group which he shares with more than a dozen Labour councilors, party officials and at least one other MP, the Mail on Sunday reported.

He also joked about a constituent being “mown down” by a truck, the newspaper said.

In another comment, he said he hoped a 72-year-old woman who asked a colleague about rubbish bin collection would soon be dead.

“The Prime Minister is determined to uphold high standards of conduct in public office and lead a government in the service of working people,” a government spokesperson said.

“He will not hesitate to take action against any minister who fails to meet these standards, as he has in this case,” the spokesperson added.

In November, Louise Haigh resigned as transport secretary after revelations that she pleaded guilty to a criminal offense before becoming a member of parliament.

Her resignation was the first by a member of Starmer’s cabinet since his Labour party won power at the July 4 general election, ending the Conservative party’s 14 years in power.