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Keir Starmer has criticized Robert Jenrick's statements about not seeing another white face in parts of Birmingham, suggesting the MP was hard to take seriously.

Political Ambitions Claims

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

It’s quite hard to take anything that Robert Jenrick says seriously; he’s clearly still running his leadership campaign.

The shadow justice secretary has been criticized for igniting a wave of divisive sentiment after he doubled down on his complaint despite criticism from figures including the former Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, the former mayor.

Community Response and Support

Starmer, who did not directly engage the statements, said he had agreed with Street's objections of Jenrick.

• Street had stated to the media the comments were wrong and described the area as a very integrated place.
• 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, supported Jenrick, saying he had made a factual statement and that there was no issue with noting realities.

But she also told BBC Breakfast: I don’t think this is where the debate should be, about how many faces people see on the street and what they look like.

Party Disagreements

The shadow chancellor became the initial high-ranking Conservative to disassociate from Jenrick over the statements, informing a gathering that they were phrases I would have avoided.

The MP repeatedly informed interviewers at the conference that he stood by the remarks and did not resile from them as it would be wrong to shut down an important debate that the nation needs to engage in about integration.

When a Sky News journalist suggested that his comments could embolden far-right groups, he said it was an completely unacceptable and absurd inquiry.

Original Statements

In his initial comments, Jenrick said Handsworth was among the least cohesive locations I have visited. Specifically, in the hour and a half he was filming news there he observed no other white individuals.

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.