A second Labour MP has been suspended from the parliamentary party over offensive comments shared on a WhatsApp group, as UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer attempts to draw a line under the affair.
Oliver Ryan, MP for Burnley, joined Andrew Gwynne, former health minister, in being suspended following a formal Labour investigation into the WhatsApp messages.
Ryan was informed of his suspension at a meeting on Monday afternoon with government chief whip Sir Alan Campbell, according to people briefed on the discussion.
“As soon as this WhatsApp group was brought to our attention, a thorough investigation was immediately launched and this process is ongoing in line with the Labour party’s rules and procedures,” a Labour spokesperson said.
“Swift action will always be taken where individuals are found to have breached the high standards expected of them as Labour party members.”
Ryan said on Sunday that comments he made in the WhatsApp group, which was called “Trigger Me Timbers”, were “completely unacceptable”.
Ryan said he regretted “not speaking out at the time” about the comments shared in the group, in which Gwynne made a string of derogatory statements about constituents and fellow MPs.
“I did not see every message, but I accept responsibility for not being more proactive in challenging what was said,” Ryan added. “I also made some comments myself which I deeply regret and would not make today and for that, I wholeheartedly apologise.”
The Mail on Sunday newspaper, which revealed Gwynne’s comments, said the MP for Gorton and Denton shared the group with more than a dozen Labour councillors, party officials and at least one other MP, all based on the outskirts of Manchester.
The newspaper reported various messages sent by Gwynne — including one in which he said he hoped a pensioner who did not vote Labour would die before the next election.
It also disclosed antisemitic slights, derogatory comments about Labour colleagues and “jokes” about a constituent being “mown down’” by a truck.
Starmer sacked Gwynne as health minister on Saturday night as soon as he became aware of the comments, a spokesperson for the prime minister said.
Gwynne said he deeply regretted his “badly misjudged comments” and apologised for any offence caused.
Ryan’s suspension by the Labour party has the automatic effect of suspending the party whip in the House of Commons.
Starmer was said by allies to have been “bloody furious” when he heard about the messages on the WhatsApp group and ordered an immediate investigation.
