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The Prime Minister has condemned the shadow justice secretary's remarks about not seeing another white face in areas of Handsworth, suggesting the politician was hard to take seriously.

Leadership Campaign Accusations

Starmer implied that Jenrick's observations were linked to a covert Tory bid for leadership and asserted he did not believe they accurately reflected the neighborhood of Handsworth.

It’s quite hard to take anything that Robert Jenrick says seriously; he’s clearly still running his leadership campaign.

Jenrick has been criticized for igniting a fire of toxic nationalism after he reiterated his remarks despite criticism from figures including the ex-Tory mayor of the region, Andy Street.

Community Rejection and Support

Starmer, who avoided directly addressing the comments, said he had supported Street's criticisms of Jenrick.

• The former mayor had told BBC Newsnight the comments were incorrect and portrayed the area as a highly cohesive community.
• I think that what Andy Street said was right, Starmer said. Having served as mayor for an extended period, Andy Street possesses deep familiarity with the locality.

Kemi Badenoch, supported Jenrick, saying he had made a truthful observation and that there was no issue with noting realities.

But she also told the program: In my opinion, the discussion should not focus on the number or appearance of individuals seen on streets.

Party Disagreements

The shadow chancellor became the first senior Tory to distance himself from his colleague over the statements, informing a Politico fringe event that they were not words that I would have used.

The MP repeatedly told interviewers at the event that he supported the comments and did not retract them as it would be wrong to shut down an important debate that we have to have as a country about integration.

When a reporter suggested that his remarks could embolden extremist organizations, Jenrick said it was an absolutely disgraceful and ridiculous question.

Original Remarks

In his initial comments, the MP said the area was among the least cohesive locations I have visited. Specifically, in the hour and a half he was recording in the area he observed no other white individuals.

That’s not the kind of country I want to live in. I want to live in a country where people are properly integrated. It’s not about the colour of your skin or your faith – of course it isn’t. But I want people to be living alongside each other, not parallel lives. That’s not the right way we want to live as a country.