A Tory councillor has apologised for posting an offensive tweet about football pundit and former England star Ian Wright.
Alexis McEvoy, who represents South Waterside for Hampshire County Council, called Wright a “typical black hypocrite” for publicly supporting Gary Lineker amid his impartiality row with the BBC.
The tweet has since been deleted and her account deactivated.
Meet Alexis McEvoy the Conservative County Councillor for Hampshire CC & District Councillor for New Forest.@Conservatives pic.twitter.com/RmFAymUycN
— Dave 🌹 (@LutsandDefoe) March 14, 2023
Ms McEvoy said she was “deeply sorry” for causing offence and that she finds “racism in any form abhorrent”.
Councillor McEvoy wrote: “I am aware that a tweet I sent, and then deleted, has caused offence.
“I did not mean it to do so and I am deeply sorry.
“I find racism in any form abhorrent, I have therefore reported myself to the monitoring officer at both Hampshire County Council and New Forest District Council.
“I have suspended myself from both the Conservative Groups... pending investigations.”
Ms McEvoy is being investigated by Hampshire county and New Forest district councils as well as their Conservative groups.
The BBC row began on Tuesday last week after Lineker posted remarks to his 8.8million Twitter followers likening ministers’ language around the Illegal Migration Bill, which bans those who arrive on small boats from settling in Britain, to Nazi Germany.
Saturday night’s Match of the Day was a scaled-back edition with highlights lasting just 20 minutes. It was broadcast without a presenter, pundits, commentators or its famous theme tune after stars including Ian Wright and Alan Shearer refused to appear in “solidarity” with Lineker.
