Livingstone under fire for concentration camp comments
Ken Livingstone was accused of gross insensitivity last night after he compared a Jewish journalist to a concentration camp guard.
The confrontation between Mr Livingstone and Oliver Finegold, a journalist from the London Evening Standard, occurred outside a party marking the 20th anniversary of Chris Smith becoming the first openly homosexual MP.
The Evening Standard and the mayor have been at odds for a number of years, with Mr Livingstone accusing the Standard of carrying unreasonably negative articles.
The relationship appears now to have deteriorated further, with Mr Livingstone allegedly branding the staff of the paper as “a load of scumbags and reactionary bigots”.
The dispute apparently began after Mr Livingstone accused the Evening Standard of “harassment of a predominantly lesbian and gay event” and allegedly told the reporter to “work for a paper that doesn’t have a record of supporting fascism” – an historic reference to sister paper the Daily Mail’s apparent pro-Hitler stance in the 1930s.
But, when Mr Finegold said he was offended by the remarks because he was Jewish, Mr Livingstone reportedly likened him to a “concentration guard”.
Mr Livingstone has made no official statement on the incident, but his office said that the incident began “light heartedly” before the journalist started swearing at the mayor.
Whatever the lead up to the event, Mr Livingstone’s words have caused outrage. Brian Coleman, chairman of the London Assembly and Conservative member, said the Mayor had “lost the plot”.
“He fails to understand that he has a position of civic leadership.”
And a spokesman for the Board of Deputies of British Jews said: “We are appalled by this latest outburst by a man whose insensitivity seems to know no bounds.”
