The tidal wave of rancour, acrimony, and vitriol spewed by the Left in the wake of Ann Widdecombe's death is appalling yet hardly surprising, argues Giles Sheldrick. The former Conservative and Brexit Party activist, 78, was found dead at her Devon home in a suspected murder, with counter-terror police now leading the investigation.
Labour Figures Attack Widdecombe
LGBTQ campaigner and former hard Left Labour candidate Peter Tatchell ranted that she was a "bigot," while former Sky News presenter Adam Boulton labelled Ms Widdecombe a "spinster" and "old maid." Both were subsequently forced into a humiliating volte-face.
Natalie Fleet, Labour's actual safeguarding minister, accused Nigel Farage and Reform UK of "faux outrage" after the apparent murder. Fleet, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls for two months, posted: "Nigel Farage and his gang of binmen get the same security as the rest of us. Sick of the faux outrage. None of them cared when a senior Reform UK politician was sharing my death threats!" She later deleted the post and issued a grovelling apology.
Hypocrisy of the Left
Sheldrick notes that Fleet, 42, a mother-of-four and grandmother-of-one, should know better given her role. She previously revealed she became pregnant after being groomed and raped as a teenager. Her pain inspired her to run for office, yet she saw nothing wrong in posting a venomous attack following the violent murder of a fellow female politician. Sheldrick calls for her immediate resignation.
Fleet is not the only snarling Labour MP to target Widdecombe. Her predecessor as safeguarding minister, Jess Phillips, posted in 2020: "Ann Widdecombe better go...not only is she a little fascist beast but also an anti-abortionist, what a lovely woman."
Further Leftist Attacks
Heather Herbert, an ex-Labour candidate who works at the University of Aberdeen, said Widdecombe's death was "good news" and hoped it was "extremely painful." Police Scotland said there was no criminality, but the university is investigating. Trans activist Herbert stood for Labour at the 2021 Scottish Parliament election and for the Greens in a council by-election in 2022.
J.K. Rowling, referencing Herbert, who identifies as a woman, said: "The issuer of that vile statement is a man, as anyone with even 1% vision could tell you. Specifically, he’s a man who said he hoped she died handcuffed to a bed and screaming in agony." When asked why men who want to be women hate women so much, she replied: "We said ‘no’."
Conclusion
Sheldrick concludes that the virus of malice, hate, and spite is not unique to the Right, but the Left's reaction to Widdecombe's death exposes their true nature. The cesspit bubbling over leaves a foul stench, and we should all be utterly ashamed.
