The father of a grooming gang victim has told GB News he is "furious" about comments made by Cabinet minister Lucy Powell who described a documentary on the grooming gangs scandal as a "dog whistle".
Marlon West, who has been campaigning for a public inquiry into grooming gangs, said he was "lost for words" after hearing the remarks from the Leader of the House of Commons.
Powell made the controversial comments during BBC Radio 4's Any Questions programme when responding to a question about Channel 4's documentary "Groomed: A National Scandal".
The Labour MP has since apologised, saying she was "sorry" if her comments were "unclear".
Marlon West said he is "disgusted" with the comments
GB NEWS
Speaking to GB News, Marlon West, the father of a grooming gang victim, said: "I'm furious. Furious. I've been campaigning now for a couple of years for a public inquiry, and this just confirms what I’ve suspected.
"I think the mask has slipped that this is the general opinion among some Labour MPs. I'm lost for words yet again.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
- 'Everyone makes mistakes!' Wes Streeting DEFENDS Lucy Powell for 'dog whistle' grooming gang comments
- 'Mask has slipped!' Keir Starmer told to SACK Labour minister over 'abhorrent' grooming gangs comment
- 'Dragging his heels!' Kemi Badenoch grills Keir Starmer as PM refuses to back national probe into rape gangs cover up
"I've been overwhelmed by other survivors contacting me. We're appalled. She should resignor if not resign, the Labour Party should at least suspend her and launch a full investigation."
GB News host Dawn Neesom asked: "Why do you think she said it? I mean, she claims it was in the heat of the moment, during a debate. Are you buying any of that?"
West responded: "She sounded very passionate, I’ll give her that. But no, not at all. All it's done is confirm for me what’s being said behind closed doors in the Labour Party about grooming and about the inquiry.
"You know, it’s the second time this week we’ve been insulted. We were insulted in Parliament by Nadia, another MP. And in some ways, this just confirms my paranoia about the Labour Party.
"One of the things I keep asking is: if they’re serious about holding a public inquiry, why hasn’t Keir Starmer met with me? I've asked for this. And it’s not about working against the Government it’s about working with the Government."
During the BBC programme, Conservative commentator Tim Montgomerie began asking: "I don't know if you saw the documentary on Channel 4 about rape gangs."
Powell interrupted, saying: "Oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now, do we? Yeah, OK, let's get that dog whistle out."
The documentary in question "Groomed: A National Scandal", centred around five girls who were sexually abused by rape gangs.
Labour's Lucy Powell made the comments on Radio 4 on Friday PAMontgomerie continued his point about authorities being "worried about upsetting community tensions" leading to girls going "undefended".
The exchange has sparked outrage, with Powell's comments being widely condemned as dismissive of victims' experiences.
Powell later attempted to clarify her position on social media, writing: "I regard issues of child exploitation and grooming with the utmost seriousness. I'm sorry if this was unclear."
She claimed she was "challenging the political point scoring around it, not the issue itself".
