An uneventful Monday was enlivened this evening by some rather unappealing scenes outside parliament. Walking back from a Ministry of Defence briefing, Sir Keir Starmer was surrounded by a group of foul-mouthed anti-lockdown protesters who yelled he was a ‘traitor,’ forcing the Labour leader to leave with a police escort.
Starmer had to be bundled away into a police car after numerous insults were aggressively hurled at him. Several demonstrators claimed the former top lawyer was guilty of ‘protecting paedophiles’ while other shouted ‘Jimmy Savile’ — a presumed reference to Boris Johnson’s comments last week about the reviled TV personality.
Johnson claimed last Monday that Starmer, when he was director of public prosecutions, spent the majority of his time ‘prosecuting journalists and failing to prosecute Jimmy Savile, as far as I can make out.’ The comment sparked a furore on both sides of the House, with many claiming the Prime Minister had failed to adequately distinguish between Starmer’s personal responsibility (none) and his departmental responsibility as the head of the Crown Prosecution Service at the time the decision was taken not to prosecute Savile.
The fact that a number of the protestors this evening referenced the ‘Jim’ll Fix It’ host has already raised questions again about the Prime Minister’s rhetoric and whether it stoked the mob which swarmed Starmer.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in