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The Prime Minister has condemned the shadow justice secretary's remarks about the lack of white faces in parts of Birmingham, stating the MP was hard to take seriously.

Leadership Campaign Claims

The prime minister implied that Jenrick's comments were part of a covert Tory bid for leadership and said he did not believe they painted a true picture the area of the Birmingham district.

I find it difficult to regard Robert Jenrick's statements as credible; he's obviously continuing his leadership campaign.

Jenrick has been criticized for igniting a fire of toxic nationalism after he doubled down on his remarks despite backlash from individuals including the ex-Tory mayor of the West Midlands, the former mayor.

Local Rejection and Defense

Starmer, who did not directly engage the comments, said he had agreed with Andy Street's objections of the MP.

• Street had stated to BBC Newsnight the comments were wrong and described Handsworth as a highly cohesive community.
• In my view, Andy Street's comments were accurate, the prime minister said. Andy Street obviously was mayor for a long time and knows the area very very well.

The Conservative leader, defended Jenrick, saying he had made a truthful observation and that there was nothing wrong with making observations.

But she also told BBC Breakfast: In my opinion, the discussion should not focus on the number or appearance of individuals seen on streets.

Internal Disagreements

Mel Stride became the first senior Tory to distance himself from his colleague over the statements, telling a Politico fringe event that they were not words that I would have used.

Jenrick repeatedly informed journalists at the event that he supported the remarks and did not retract them as it would be wrong to end a crucial discussion that we have to have as a country about social cohesion.

When a reporter put it to him that his remarks could embolden far-right groups, Jenrick said it was an completely unacceptable and absurd inquiry.

Original Remarks

In his initial comments, Jenrick said the area was among the least cohesive locations I have visited. In fact, in the 90 minutes he was recording in the area he didn’t see another white face.

That’s not the kind of country I want to live in. I want to live in a country where people are properly integrated. It’s not about the colour of your skin or your faith – of course it isn’t. But I want people to be living alongside each other, not parallel lives. That’s not the right way we want to live as a country.