Home Office minister Anna Turley has been criticised by Tory shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy for paying tribute to five joyriders "on a par" with the two police officers killed in a crash.
PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were killed when a Volkswagen Passat – which had been pursued by police – was driven the wrong way along a dual carriageway of the A66 near Middlesbrough and hit their vehicle on Saturday. The five people travelling in the Volkswagen – Cole Robert Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and 23-year-olds Michael Robert Cahill and Jacob Matusiak – also died.
Minister's tribute to all seven victims
Ms Turley, whose constituency includes the crash site, paid tribute to all seven people killed in the collision. She wrote on Facebook: "This morning I went down to South Bank to lay flowers and pay my respects, on behalf of our whole community, to the seven people whose lives were so tragically cut short yesterday.
"There really are no words for the heartbreak their families, friends and loved ones will be feeling today. May you all rest in peace."
Tory criticism over 'jarring' statement
But Mr Timothy said her comments did not "feel right". He wrote on X: "Anna Turley is a Home Office minister. She wants to 'pay her respects to the seven people whose lives were tragically cut short' in the Middlesbrough crash this weekend.
"I can't be the only one for whom this statement jars. Two police officers - one an army veteran - were needlessly killed while on service.
"The five thugs who caused the crash - who killed PC Tom Clough and PC Matthew Blades - also died. These criminals, with many past offences between them, were driving illegally and irresponsibly the wrong way down an A road.
"We don't want to speak ill of the dead, I understand that. But the tragedy is the loss of those two police officers. The five thugs who killed them were responsible not only for their own demise but for the deaths of two innocent men.
"We may live in an age of emoting, but we should be able to see the difference between right and wrong. And it doesn't feel right for a Home Office minister to put two police officers on a par with the thugs who killed them."
Minister defends her comments
Ms Turley told The Telegraph: "I'm dismayed that Nick Timothy would try and use a horrific situation that has deeply affected my community, and my local police force for a cheap political tweet. One that is deliberately disingenuous at that.
"The two officers who were killed are heroes whose bravery will never be forgotten, and that is not diminished by recognising seven lives were lost in this horrendous incident."
PC Blades and PC Clough were not involved in the original pursuit, but had been called to the area to assist with the search for the Volkswagen.
