A LONDON council has hit back at a Tory MP’s “extremely disappointing” comments after he branded a borough of the city a “no-go zone” when discussing Islamophobia within his party.
Paul Scully, an MP for the Sutton and Cheam area of the UK’s capital, was speaking on BBC Radio London when he began talking about people being worried about their “neighbourhoods changing” before calling the Tower Hamlets district of London and the Sparkhill area of Birmingham “no-go zones”.
The phrase echoed one used by Donald Trump several years ago to describe parts of London.
The comments caused uproar in Birmingham as the Tory West Midlands mayor Andy Street said his colleagues at Westminster needed to stop using “nonsense slurs” as he stood up for the city.
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Tower Hamlets Council has now got in touch with The National to say the comments from Scully were “extremely disappointing” as bosses highlighted their pride in the “iconic” borough and what it has to offer.
In a spicy comeback, the council insisted Tower Hamlets is a “go to” area, adding it was an example of how people from all backgrounds get on together.
A spokesperson said: “These comments are surprising and extremely disappointing.
“Tower Hamlets is one of the most popular places in the country to live, work and visit. Our borough is iconic, and hosts some of London’s best destinations from the Young V&A and the Tower of London to the award-winning Victoria Park and international events like the London Marathon.
“We host tens of millions of tourists each year which provide much needed jobs, business, and essential tax revenue income to the UK economy. Tower Hamlets was built on entrepreneurship from the London Docks, and that continues today with our famous markets and Canary Wharf which provides the third largest economic output in the UK.
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“While we have destinations any city would envy, we are most proud of our people. Tower Hamlets is a microcosm of an international city. We are an example of how people of all backgrounds get on together in one of the most diverse places in the country. In fact, 87% of people said they get on with each other in our recent survey of residents.
“Every part of Tower Hamlets is a ‘go to’ area for millions of people to visit again and again. That is enough of an endorsement for us.”
Scully was being interviewed by the BBC after Lee Anderson said “Islamists have got control” of London mayor Sadiq Khan, comments which have caused him to lose the Tory whip.
Scully has since apologised for his remarks in another BBC Radio London interview saying he "put his hands up" for using language "he regrets".
He added he was "frustrated in the language" he used and lost "nuance" in the issues he wanted to get across.
The former minister for London, who was also a former mayoral candidate, said: "What I was trying to say, I thought I was being specific about but clearly not, is the fact that a lot of the conversation, and the vacuum that's allowed to then be filled by populists, is when prejudice builds up because of perception.
"There are areas of this country where there are tiny, tiny groups of people that cause people to feel uncomfortable in particular areas.
"That might be a white gang, that might be a black gang, a Muslim gang, whatever, and that then tends to write off whole communities for some people."
He described this perception about some communities as "totally inappropriate".
Tom Pursglove, Tory MP and minister for legal migration, had urged Scully to withdraw his claims.
He said: “I think it would be best, again, if that comment was withdrawn.
“I don’t recognise that as being the situation in London or Birmingham, but we as politicians must always be forward leaning and on the front foot when it comes to integrating people into our communities and making sure that people are able to play a full contribution in UK society.”
However, Pursglove declined to say whether Anderson’s comments about Khan were Islamophobic.
He added: “I think that what Lee said was wrong and he shouldn’t have said it.
“The chief whip asked him to apologise and to withdraw those comments, and he didn’t do so, and so that left no option but to withdraw the whip.”
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