Biggest Tory donor 'not racist,' but was right to apologise for 'comments that sound racist' Conservative peer tells LBC
12 March 2024, 10:15
The biggest Tory donor is "not a racist" but "made some unfortunate remarks that do sound racist," a Conservative peer has told LBC.
The Conservative Party's biggest donor allegedly told his colleagues that looking at Diane Abbott makes you "want to hate all black women".
Frank Hester, who donated £10 million to the Tories in the past year, also said the former Labour MP "should be shot", according to The Guardian.
Speaking to LBC's Henry Riley, Lord Marland, the businessman and former Conservative Party donor and Treasurer, said he knows Mr Hester and he is not a racist.
"I know Frank Hester, and he is not a racist... he made some unfortunate remarks that do sound racist, and quite rightly he has apologised for them,"
He added Mr Hester "does a lot of business in Jamaica, he does business in Malaysia, in Bangladesh and places like that so he's not a racist."
Speaking to LBC's Tom Swarbrick the government's Energy Minister Graham Stuart said the comments were "clearly unacceptable" but he refused to say if the party should return his donations.
"It was clearly unacceptable and he was quite right to apologise," he said.
Sir Keir Starmer has urged the Conservatives to return the money Frank Hester has donated to the Tory Party after his alleged "abhorrent" remarks about Labour MP Diane Abbott.
The Labour leader told ITV's Lorraine on Tuesday: "The comments about Diane Abbott are just abhorrent.
"And Diane has been a trailblazer, she has paved the way for others, she's probably faced more abuse than any other politician over the years on a sustained basis.
"And I'm sorry, this apology this morning that is pretending that what was said wasn't racist or anything to do with the fact she's a woman, I don't buy that I'm afraid, and I think that it's time the Tory Party called it out and returned the money."
These comments were allegedly made by Mr Hester in 2019 at his firm's headquarters, The Phoenix Partnership (TPP).
Mr Hester, the founder and chief executive of TPP, a healthcare software firm, allegedly made the remarks about Ms Abbott as he criticised a female executive from another company.
Statement regarding recent media reports:
— Frank Hester OBE (@HesterObe) March 11, 2024
Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbot in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism,…
He reportedly said: "She’s sh*t. She’s the sh*ttest person. Honestly, I try not to be sexist but when I meet somebody like [the executive], I just …
"It’s like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you’re just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she’s there, and I don’t hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot.
"[The executive] and Diane Abbott need to be shot. She's stupid … If we can get [the executive] being unprofessional we can get her sacked. It’s not as good as her dying. It would be much better if she died. She’s consuming resources. She's eating food that other people could eat. You know?"
Ms Abbott is both the first Black woman elected into parliament and the longest-serving Black MP.
Although still a member of Labour, she sits in the House of Commons as an Independent since having her whip suspended in April 2023.
Since Mr Hester's comments have been published, he has received a barrage of backlash, including from London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Speaking on LBC to Andrew Marr, the London mayor said he was "shocked" and "appalled", calling for the Conservatives to return the millions of pounds.
"I can't believe, because we do in our party, that the Conservative Party didn't do due diligence about this guy.
"I also fail to believe if he doesn't apologise unequivocally, withdraw his comments, apologise to Diane Abbott, I don't see how the Conservatives can keep his money.
"I think there are serious questions about any political party, including my political party, who takes money from somebody with those sorts of views.
"And so, I'm hoping this man not only reflects on what he said but apologises unequivocally to Diane Abbott but also, makes it quite clear what his views currently are and if not, the Tories must return the money.", Mr Khan added.
In 2023, Mr Hester reportedly donated £5 million to the Conservatives in May and another £5 million to the party via TPP in November.
Other senior Labour members have also condemned the Tory donor, with Labour Party chairman Annelise Dodds saying the comments were "reprehensible".
She has also called for Rishi Sunak to hand back the donations.
Cabinet minister Mel Stride said he thinks it is time to "move on" from Tory Party donor Frank Hester's alleged comments about Labour MP Diane Abbott.
He told broadcasters: "What is clear (is) that what he said was inappropriate.
"He has, as I understand it, apologised for those remarks.
"I think the critical point here is I don't think what he was saying was a gender-based or a race-based comment, but it was clearly inappropriate.
"He has apologised and I think we need to move on from that."Much like Labour, the Liberal Democrats have also urged the Conservatives to return Mr Hester's donations but they also ruled out awarding him a peerage.
A Conservative spokesman said: "Mr Hester has made clear that while he was rude, his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor the colour of her skin. He has since apologised."
Lawyers for TFP told The Guardian that the comments had been "taken out of context", were "distorted" and "did not accurately represent him or the company".
In a statement posted on Mr Hester's Twitter account, the Tory donor said: "Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbot in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin.
"The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism, not least because he experienced it as the child of Irish immigrants in the 1970s.
"He rang Diane Abbott twice today to try to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her and is deeply sorry for his remarks. He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life."