West Yorkshire Police have launched an investigation into alleged racist comments made by Conservative Party donor Frank Hester regarding MP Diane Abbott. The comments, reportedly made at a meeting in 2019, have sparked widespread controversy. In response to the allegations, Kemi Badenoch, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, has been vocal, describing the ongoing furore as 'trivia' and suggesting that the Conservative Party should retain the £10m donation by Hester, in addition to a further £5m donation. Badenoch's remarks have further fueled the debate, with critics accusing her of trivializing racism. The investigation by the police marks a significant escalation in the response to the allegations against Hester.
Police probe allegations Tory donor Frank Hester made 'racist' comments about Diane Abbott https://t.co/9RMjeJoCDD https://t.co/DNQ2hxI5bD
Dianne Abbott: Police investigate Tory donor alleged race comments https://t.co/c66mvXrJOJ
Police investigating alleged comments by Conservative donor Frank Hester about MP Diane Abbott https://t.co/YEIAFQzPOP
Dianne Abbott: Police investigate Tory donor alleged race comments https://t.co/jutHP9Uzzz
🔴 Latest politics updates as police investigating Tory donor Frank Hester over alleged racist comments Follow the live updates here ⬇️ https://t.co/fM0AdsvZtq
Tory party donor Frank Hester's 'racist' comments about Diana Abbott to be investigated by police https://t.co/desGSCJfOi
West Yorkshire police are investigating the comments made by Tory Party donor Frank Hester. They were unacceptable but not a police matter. West Yorkshire police’s resources & time would be better spent dealing with more pressing matters, like the Batley school teacher in hiding
West Yorkshire Police has launched an investigation into alleged racist comments made by Conservative Party donor Frank Hester about MP Diane Abbott. https://t.co/cJmfYVlB8b
Police launch investigation into alleged racist comments made by Tory party donor about Diane Abbott https://t.co/f5rIxZRHE5
Police investigate alleged racist remarks by Frank Hester https://t.co/l2qVQx5h79
BREAKING: Police are investigating alleged racist comments made by major Tory party donor Frank Hester about Diane Abbott Read more: https://t.co/vrvm2ZLyg3
West Yorkshire Police probing 'racist' comments by Tory party donor Frank Hester https://t.co/Ekc14L0ocg
🚨 BREAKING: West Yorkshire Police are now investigating Tory donor Frank Hester's alleged racist comments at a meeting in 2019
BREAKING: West Yorkshire police are investigating alleged racist comments made by Tory Party donor Frank Hester, according to Sky News
BREAKING: West Yorkshire police are investigating alleged racist comments made by Tory Party donor Frank Hester https://t.co/PAiZ4D1jU3 📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube https://t.co/ud4f7G6pOS
🚨 BREAKING: West Yorkshire Police are now investigating Tory donor Frank Hester's comments at a meeting in 2019
Just Kemi Badenoch downplaying Tory donor Frank Hester's racist comments about Diane Abbott https://t.co/njJHmQ1sjR
Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer suggests the Conservative Party should keep the £5m donated from top donor Frank Hester, despite the 'unacceptable remarks' he made towards Diane Abbott 'So, accept the apology, accept the money and move on?' 'Yes... I think that's exactly right.' https://t.co/haKMU5SntQ
What should the Tories do with Frank Hester's £10 million donation? I believe it should go to charities of Diane Abbott's choosing, as I said on BBC Politics Midlands this weekend: https://t.co/vsN8hO11tL
"She's able to say 'if a black woman doesn't think it's a big deal, what are all you people getting excited about?'" Caller Cecelia tells @mrjamesob 'it's absolutely frightening' that Kemi Badenoch is 'trivialising' the race row that Frank Hester is embroiled in. https://t.co/U8CUNji5Hm
The government has "drawn a line" under the Frank Hester race row and shouldn't have to give back the money he donated, Kemi Badenoch has said Read more 🔗 https://t.co/BTSzcIpvYr
For the umpteenth time: Frank Hester has apologised for being "rude" about Diane Abbott. https://t.co/QqseQo9JfK
'The most outspoken critic...and simultaneously the loudest denier of reality.' For Kemi Badenoch to claim Frank Hester's comments were 'not really about Diane Abbott' is 'obnoxious to the point of incredulity' says @mrjamesob, reflecting on her calling the race row 'trivia'. https://t.co/N0fyyNgSPE
Kemi Badenoch says the Tories shouldn't return any money from top donor Frank Hester, including a further £5m donation on top of £10m donated last year 'Forgiveness is the right response', she tells @Peston https://t.co/IPzSFhNFRQ
Tories 'have drawn a line' under Frank Hester race row and should keep donations - Badenoch Read more 🔗 https://t.co/BTSzcIpvYr
Kemi Badenoch does make a fair point about now drawing a line over Frank Hester. Whilst his comments as reported in 2019 were unacceptable, he has apologised & giving him £15 million would be an odd “penalty”. The media egging this & dragging it out is just an obsession now. https://t.co/sZFRzQAM2R
'I don't think we should return it' @KemiBadenoch says Frank Hester should be forgiven for his 'racist' comments about MP Diane Abbott She says the party shouldn't return his money because the donations show him 'wanting to do something for the country' Speaking to @Peston https://t.co/EBrWnMpDt5
'The relentless focus on it is trivial' @KemiBadenoch says the row over 'racist' comments made by top Tory donor Frank Hester is 'outsized', and that we need 'to move on' and forgive him Speaking to @Peston https://t.co/8ky5lnNaox
Kemi Badenoch does make a good point here about drawing a line on Frank Hester. Whilst his comments as reported from 2019 were unacceptable he has apologised & giving him £15 million would be an odd “penalty”. At this point, the media dragging it out is just an obsession. https://t.co/L7riiEspMQ
on this morning’s media round Kemi Badenoch complained a ‘media bubble’ is keeping the Frank Hester story going & then ensures the story continues by calling racism ‘trivia’, A+ work https://t.co/QsJQU0PEP6
Until Hester acknowledges racism and apologises for it, the claim he has apologised is partial and misleading. He has apologised for rudeness and denies blatant racism is racism. That can be no basis for rehabilitation into public life https://t.co/5djx3J8DgC
So far senior Tories have said that when Frank Hester said Diane Abbott made him "want to hate all black women" and "should be shot" he wasn't talking about race, gender or Diane Abbott.
'This is trivia': Kemi Badenoch hits out at continued furore over Tory donor 'racism' row https://t.co/suJ3rRCBLQ
Frank Hester's £10m donation "should be kept" says secretary of state for business and trade @KemiBadenoch. The Conservatives have "drawn a line" under the Frank Hester racism row, she adds. https://t.co/EvGV1ik5Hl 📺 Sky 501 https://t.co/9lrD0BPsAA
Kemi Badenoch to LBC on Frank Hester row… “It’s trivia, it really is” “We need to get to a place where we stop chasing people around & looking everywhere for the racism” “Everybody is accusing, and counter accusing around racism” @LBC @NickFerrariLBC https://t.co/tCL8QWg9n6
'This is trivia Nick, I am sorry but I really do believe it is.' In response to whether Frank Hester has acknowledged his comments were 'racist', Kemi Badenoch insists to @NickFerrariLBC that 'we've been talking about this for over a week and we need to move away'. https://t.co/p06eerRLuv
Some will see this as pitch to the Tory Right. But it may just be Badenoch being Badenoch: she hates what she sees as other people pushing a narrative on her + often hits out at 'cancel culture' - which can blind her to the facts of a case (Hester *was* talking about Abbott) https://t.co/ZDycxGPgRe
Kemi Badenoch is *actually* on #BBCBreakfast saying the ongoing Frank Hester stories are ‘media bubble speculation’ https://t.co/0PFToH6AL1
If Hester can't say racism is racist then the Conservatives going soft on racism to try to take another donation isn't going to move things on https://t.co/lvDhktmfVL
‘I’m surprised I’m still talking about it,’ says Kemi Badenoch about Frank Hester on #BBCBreakfast https://t.co/uw4elZ9pxe
'He wasn't talking to Diane Abbott, it wasn't even really about Diane Abbott' does not mitigate but exacerbated. (They are about Diane Abbott by being vile about death re somebody else Hester hates & they become about all black women by crude extension of racist stereotyping) https://t.co/R7XG1qTu7G
Kemi Badenoch's bizarre media round continues ... Asked about the Frank Hester row on BBC Breakfast, she says: "That was a week ago*, I'm surprised I'm still talking about it." * It was 6 days ago.
Kemi Badenoch, the first govt minister to say Frank Hester's comments about Diane Abbott were "racist", seems to have changed her tune. She tells LBC: "This was something that happened 5 years ago - he wasn't talking to Diane Abbott, it wasn't even really about Diane Abbott."
This is the current state of play with the Frank Hester’s “additional £5m donation. The money has not yet been handed over; the Tories were in talks about the extra cash👇 https://t.co/1w1u4C6nhH