Labour’s Leader of the House of Commons, Lucy Powell, has found herself at the centre of a political storm after she appeared to refer to the issue of grooming gangs as a “dog whistle” during a BBC Radio 4 debate. The comment, made on Any Questions on Friday night, sparked widespread backlash and prompted Ms Powell to issue a public apology.
The incident occurred during a discussion involving Conservative Party co-chairman Nigel Huddleston, Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, and Reform UK member Tim Montgomerie. When Mr Montgomerie referenced a recent Channel 4 documentary featuring the stories of five women who were groomed and abused, Ms Powell responded: “Oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now, do we? Let’s get that dog whistle out, shall we?”
The remark was swiftly criticised as dismissive and insensitive, particularly given the subject matter. Many accused Ms Powell, MP for Manchester Central, of belittling victims of child exploitation and attempting to deflect from a serious and harrowing issue.
In a post on social media on Saturday night, Ms Powell said: “In the heat of a discussion on Any Questions I would like to clarify that I regard issues of child exploitation and grooming with the utmost seriousness. I’m sorry if this was unclear. I was challenging the political point scoring around it, not the issue itself. As a constituency MP I’ve dealt with horrendous cases.”
Her Cabinet colleague, Health Secretary Wes Streeting, appeared on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg and confirmed Ms Powell was “mortified” over the misunderstanding. He said: “She does not want and would not want people who’ve campaigned on, or been victims of, these most appalling crimes to think she was in any way trying to undermine those experiences or those arguments.”
Mr Streeting stressed the importance of depoliticising such a grave issue: “On such a serious issue, the more we can take the heat of the politics out of this, and get to the heart of the challenge, the better.”
When asked on Sky News whether Labour viewed the grooming gangs scandal as a “dog-whistle” issue or a veiled form of racism, Mr Streeting responded firmly: “No, and I don’t think that’s what Lucy intended to imply in a heated debate on Radio 4, and that’s why she’s apologised for what she said.”
He added, “We all make mistakes, and the important thing is that we own it.”
Asked if Ms Powell’s job was at risk, the Health Secretary defended his colleague, saying: “I think she’s made a genuine mistake, she’s owned up to it, she’s said sorry and we’ll move on.”
Tim Montgomerie, who brought up the Channel 4 documentary during the debate, described her remarks as “clearly ill-judged”, but also suggested they pointed to a wider concern about how difficult it has become to discuss sensitive issues. Speaking to Sky News, he said: “There’s been a tendency – it’s gone on for too long now – to close all sorts of important debates down by throwing that racist charge at people.”
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“In the context of grooming gangs, an issue of such consequence, I think it was clearly ill-judged by Lucy Powell. But I think she was keen to have a go at Reform, and unfortunately, the words she chose have wider resonance.”
Mr Huddleston, representing the Conservative Party, was scathing in his criticism. “Quite frankly, Lucy Powell made quite a lot of silly comments on a whole range of issues. That was one of them,” he told Sky News. “This is a really serious issue, and to kind of belittle it is completely inappropriate.”
He further accused Labour of downplaying the issue and called for a “proper, full inquiry”. “There’s accusations that Labour councils failed to act. If they’ve got nothing to hide, they should welcome a full inquiry. The public demands that.”
The incident has reignited the highly charged debate over how political parties approach the sensitive and deeply distressing subject of grooming gangs. While Ms Powell’s apology may help to ease immediate tensions, calls for clarity, transparency, and justice remain at the forefront of public concern.
