Labour's deputy leader Angela Rayner has issued an 'unreserved' apology for calling Conservative politicians 'scum' during a party conference event. The MP initially refused to retract the remark, saying she would only apologise when Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised for his own past comments.
In a Facebook post on Thursday evening, Ms Rayner said she had reflected on 'our political debate' and the 'abuse that now seems to feature all too often'. She added that she would be 'more careful' about her language in future.
The apology came after a man was sentenced for sending a threatening email to Ms Rayner, telling her to 'watch your back and kids'. Benjamin Iliffe, of Cambridgeshire, received a 15-week suspended prison sentence. Ms Rayner described the threats as 'terrifying and explicit', with a 'devastating impact on me, my children and others close to me'.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer expressed solidarity, calling the threats 'shocking and appalling'. Conservative MPs, including Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi and Tom Tugendhat, welcomed the apology, with Zahawi tweeting: 'Thank you for a message from the heart.'
