Kemi Badenoch isn’t exactly known for beating around the bush, and her spat with a Labour MP at this evening’s Women and Equalities Select Committee was no exception. After Kate Osborne accused the Business Secretary of using ‘inflammatory language’, and likening ‘children and young people coming out as trans to the spread of a disease’, Badenoch didn’t hesitate to hit back, saying:
KB: I never said that. That is a lie.
KO: Well…
KB: That is a lie. And I think you should withdraw that statement. That is a lie. You are lying. You are lying.
KO: I’m not lying to you…
KB: You are. I have never used the word disease. And this is exactly what I’m talking about. You are making a statement in a select committee that are untrue.
KO: You’ve just called me a liar.
The rather heated debate continued, with Badenoch pressing Osborne: ‘When was that statement made? And where? You said I used the word “disease”. When?’
A clearly flustered Osborne responded: ‘I don’t know. Did you?’
Helpfully for, er, Osborne, Tory MP Caroline Nokes eventually leapt to the rescue of her fellow select committee member.
‘We have to do better than this,’ Nokes lectured Badenoch . ‘You yourself used the word “explosion” in response to an earlier question about the numbers of young trans people and then didn’t produce any…. You haven’t provided the data to back that up.’ ‘I’m sure we have that data,’ Badenoch protested, ‘because we know… I’m sure we have that data.’
It looks like the blue on blue warfare isn’t over just yet…
Watch the exchange here:
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