Conservative former minister Mark Francois has been criticised by a Labour MP for using an "outdated and crass racial slur" in the House of Commons. Sarah Owen, the first MP of south-east Asian ancestry, called out Mr Francois for referring to Japanese people as “Japs”.
Neither Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle nor Defence Secretary Ben Wallace subsequently condemned the use of the term after Mr Francois, MP for Rayleigh and Wickford, said it during defence questions on Monday. Raising a point of order on Tuesday, Ms Owen said Mr Francois’ “outdated and crass racial slur has fallen well below the bar we should expect”.
She also criticised environment minister Mark Spencer for suggesting there could be “some little man in China” eavesdropping on his own private conversations. That comment came as he fielded questions over security breaches concerning senior Government figures last week.
