The National Lottery Heritage Fund has been forced to intervene with one of its projects after GB News uncovered that it spent £250,000 supporting an initiative that put on a controversial political speech, breaching the fund’s rules.
The speech was delivered by an anti-police activist who said that the Met contains a gang “executing black kids” and called former Prime Minister Boris Johnson a “devil”.
The explosive speech was delivered as part of a series called 81 Acts of Exuberant Defiance, celebrating the 1981 Brixton riots, which was awarded the £250,000 of funding. The riots resulted in 279 injuries to the police, over 100 vehicles being burned, and multiple shops being looted.
The series is being run by a group called The Ubele Initiative, who used the money to organise 81 events intended to commemorate the riots and “resist the whitening of our history”.
The Heritage Fund is seen to back the speech
One of the events was a talk by anti-police activist Stafford Scott, called “War Inna Babylon”.
In his controversial speech he claimed that elements of the Metropolitan Police Service were operating as a “gang” that was “executing black kids”.
He also called Boris Johnson and the deputy mayor for policing in London “devils”.
Scott also called the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime “devils” during his rant.
Tory MP Brendan Clarke-Smith calls on lottery funding to be spent in communities properly
GB News
He went on to say that the government’s plans to crackdown on gangs was “fascism” and that the Tories on the Equalities and Human Rights Commission “don’t give a damn about black people.”
Despite this, his speech was warmly received by the audience.
Tory MP Brendan Clarke-Smith told GB News: “I think when people play the lottery, they want to see that money going towards good causes and we want to see that spent in our communities properly.
“What we don’t want to see is it being used for is these political causes, things that actually cause more tension in the community.”
Clarke-Smith, the MP for Bassetlaw, added: “That’s why it’s really, really important not just to look at the applications, but the organisations as well to make sure that this doesn’t happen in the future.”
He said that the speech contained “nasty political views”, adding: “this is not really where money should be going.”
A National Heritage Lottery Fund spokesperson said: “This project commemorates the 40th anniversary of the Brixton Uprising and creates a space for national reflection on the April 1981 uprisings and their place in the UK history of Black social justice.
"The project aims to support a step change in how black communities are represented, access and participate in heritage and encourages intergenerational partnerships between those with lived experiences of the 1981 uprisings and young people to explore this heritage.”
However, they added: “Our funding can be used for projects covering all types of heritage, including those that facilitate conversations around heritage that may be thought of as challenging.
"However, our funding should not be used to promote the causes or beliefs of political organisations.
"We have been in touch with The Ubele Initiative to discuss the event in question and how the project will be delivered in line with our funding agreement.”
The Ubele Initiative and 81 Acts of Exuberant Defiance did not respond to our request for comment.