Alex Armstrong issues blistering response as Labour peer accused of mocking grooming gang inquiry: 'Disgusting!'

Lydia Davies
Thu, 02 Apr 2026 09:47:08 +0000

Alex Armstrong has slammed Labour peer Baroness Ayesha Hazarika after she was recorded joking about grooming gangs during a radio broadcast.

The exchange took place on Sunday during Times Radio’s Weekend Drivetime show, hosted by journalist Stig Abell.

In a 24-second clip of the broadcast, which has since gone viral online, Baroness Hazarika can be heard saying: “I’m like an enabler… I’m a groomer, oh my God. Just because I’m Muslim, stop it, honestly, ha ha ha.”

The host responded: “Don’t groom me, don’t groom me, Ayesha."

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The Labour peer then joked: “There will be an inquiry, a judge-led inquiry into me right now.”

Both Ms Hazarika and Mr Abell can be heard laughing during the discussion.

Alex reacted on X, writing: “What a disgusting thing to laugh about. Ayesha should hang her head in shame.”

Fans of the presenter were quick to rally behind him on X.

“Labour continues to show its true colours. This is beyond disgusting,” one wrote.

Another added: “This is how you lose the room, not a slip but a pattern of tone-deaf politics that hands your opponents the narrative on a plate.”

“@ayeshahazarika Laughing and joking like that shows you can't care! What the hell do you think you are playing at? It shows @UKLabour’s true colours! What is @Ofcom going to do about this?” asked another.

A fourth described Ms Hazarika's comments as “absolutely disgusting".

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What a disgusting thing to laugh about.
Ayesha should hang her head in shame. https://t.co/VWzEGGbtSQ
— Alex Armstrong (@Alexarmstrong) April 1, 2026

GB News contributor Nick Dixon also shared the audio clip on X, penning: “Hard to find someone less offended by jokes than me, but the attitude implied by this one is very disturbing.

"Seems to ridicule the notion that Muslims are involved in grooming gangs.

"Does sound like a private school immigrant with a hatred for working-class native Brits.” (sic)

GB News presenter Patrick Christys also weighed in, writing: “Urgh, this is awful.”

Others lodged complaints with Ofcom and called on Times Radio to investigate the exchange and issue apologies.

Marilyn Hawes, founder and CEO of Freedom from Abuse, told GB News she was “speechless” after hearing the clip.

She described the exchange as “so inappropriate” and “hideous,” adding: “This is typical of privileged people who have no idea about the reality of this issue.

"They have and will never have any idea of what it is like to be raped by 1,000 men, as some of these girls have been. I don’t know why or how she is a Baroness.”

The incident comes as the national inquiry into grooming gangs formally begins.

The inquiry, chaired by former children’s commissioner Baroness Anne Longfield, will examine whether ethnicity, culture, or religion played a part in the widespread abuse.

Local probes will start in areas including Oldham, with the inquiry having powers to compel witnesses and documents and a budget of £65 million.

It is expected to conclude no later than March 2029.

GB News has reached out to Baroness Hazarika, Stig Abell, and Times Radio for comment on the exchange.