LABOUR MP Neil Coyle has had the whip suspended following allegations he made racist comments to a journalist on the Parliamentary estate, a party spokesman said.
Coyle, the MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark, has been accused of using offensive language in conversation with a reporter at Strangers’ Bar, who said it caused him to feel “uncomfortable in my place of work”.
Henry Dyer, who covers politics for Insider, said he reported the alleged comments to the Commons Speaker, who he said took “immediate action” with his staff and suspended Coyle from the bars on the estate pending an investigation.
A Labour spokesperson said: “The Labour Party expects the highest standards of behaviour from all our MPs and we take allegations of this sort very seriously.
“Accordingly, the chief whip has now suspended the Labour whip from Neil Coyle pending an investigation.”
It is understood that after Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle became aware of Mr Dyer’s allegations, he convened a meeting with the Serjeant at Arms who ordered that Coyle should be suspended from bars in the Commons for six months.
Authorities in the House of Lords are believed to have taken similar action.
Dyer, who is British-Chinese, said he came into contact with Coyle in Strangers’ Bar on the evening of Tuesday February 1, after going for Chinese New Year dinner with his family.
He accused the MP of making Sinophobic remarks, which he said made him feel uncomfortable.
Dyer claimed he had also witnessed Coyle “angrily shouting at a Labour staffer” in the bar the previous evening.
On the morning of Thursday February 3, Dyer said he informed the Speaker what had happened.
“The Speaker and his staff took immediate action, in conjunction with the Serjeant at Arms and the House of Lords’ authorities, to suspend Coyle from the bars on the Parliamentary estate pending an investigation by the Labour whips office into the incidents on Monday and Tuesday evening,” he said.
The House of Commons declined to comment.
In a statement following the withdrawal of the Labour whip, Coyle promised to co-operate “fully” with an investigation into his conduct.
Coyle said: “I’m very sorry for my insensitive comments, have apologised to everyone involved and will be co-operating fully with the investigation.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel