Farage Endangering Women By Failing To Condemn Paracetamol Claims, Says Bridget Phillipson

Nigel Farage is “endangering women’s health” by failing to condemn Donald Trump’s claims that utilizing paracetamol during gestation causes autism, Bridget Phillipson has said.

The acquisition caput and curate for women said she had utilized nan painkiller passim her 2nd pregnancy, and she warned that Reform’s connections pinch aesculapian conspiracy theories including anti-vaccine rhetoric made nan statement a threat to nationalist health.

Phillipson is moving for Labour lawman leader and has said she wants to usage nan level to make a stronger civilized statement against Reform, saying Labour needs to “get connected nan beforehand ft challenging them”.

She said Farage’s unwillingness to repudiate Trump’s comments connected autism and paracetamol was wrong. “I couldn’t person sewage done my 2nd gestation without taking paracetamol, and to scaremonger successful that way, and to scare women and put lives astatine risk, I deliberation is really dangerous,” she said.

Reform has besides drawn disapproval for giving a platform to a cardiologist who suggested nan Covid vaccine was linked to King Charles’s cancer. Phillipson said: “Vaccinations person saved nan lives of millions of people. They’re [Reform] prepared to spell to those fringes and we’ve sewage to beryllium firmer arsenic a statement successful taking them on.”

She suggested location had been immoderate vexation that Labour had not travel retired fighting quickly capable against immoderate of Reform’s arguable announcements complete nan summertime and said that would change.

“We do person to beryllium firmer successful our approach,” she said. “And arsenic lawman leader that’s what I’ll do, because I judge nan attack we request to return is wherever nan British group are. I don’t deliberation Reform speak for nan immense mostly of nan British people, who abhor prejudice, intolerance and racism.

“We person seen nan drift some from Reform and nan Conservatives into connection which is ever much divisive, that involves an othering of people. I deliberation it’s fundamentally irresponsible for elected politicians to behave successful that way.”

Phillipson besides said she was unnerved by really Farage and far-right protests were prepared to usage women’s information arsenic an statement against migration. A number of protests complete nan summertime appeared to person women astatine nan forefront extracurricular asylum hotels, including nan 1 successful Epping sparked by an incident for which an asylum seeker was later convicted of intersexual assault.

“Whenever unit against women occurs, location should beryllium nan strongest imaginable consequence to it,” Phillipson said. “But what victims don’t request is group seeking to make governmental opportunism retired of their suffering. We request to beryllium clear connected calling them out.”

She said Farage’s scheme to end indefinite time off to remain, replacing it pinch rolling visa pinch a precocious net threshold, was different illustration of a argumentation that Labour should antagonistic connected civilized grounds alternatively than conscionable practicality. “It would rip families apart, would rip communities isolated and is frankly disgusting.”

Phillipson faces a awesome situation arsenic acquisition caput complete plans to betterment nan Send system, including perchance scrapping nan strategy of acquisition attraction plans nether which costs person spiralled while parents still struggle to entree capable help. MPs are profoundly concerned astir nan changes and location person been warnings of a parliamentary conflict ahead.

Opposition parties person based on nan strategy is being taken advantage of, pinch questions raised, peculiarly locally, complete nan usage of schoolhouse taxis by abnormal children.

Phillipson said she would fiercely defy Send betterment becoming a civilization war. “It’s profoundly upsetting for tons of parents to perceive comments from various Reform characters astir really their children are severely behaved aliases their parenting is mediocre erstwhile each they’re trying to do is supply support to their children who person further needs,” she said.

“We request to get amended astatine support that’s required successful bid to let each children to thrive, and that’s why nan strategy isn’t presently delivering.”

Lucy Powell, who is vying pinch Phillipson for nan lawman leadership, issued her ain telephone connected Thursday for nan statement to beryllium much nonstop successful taking connected Reform, admitting Labour was struggling pinch “authenticity and attention”.

She wrote successful nan Guardian: “We consequence losing support by taking progressive voters for granted while failing to articulate a clear and compelling statement to those flirting pinch Farage that sets retired why they would beryllium incorrect to put their religion successful him.”

Powell besides criticised Farage’s plans connected indefinite time off to remain, calling them “a strategy cooked up by a man who is nan emotion kid of Margaret Thatcher and Enoch Powell”.

Phillipson’s run has been fixed a boost by nan endorsement of 2 awesome waste and acquisition unions, nan GMB and Unison. But polls put her importantly down Powell, nan erstwhile House of Commons leader, who is opinionated connected a level much captious of nan leadership.

Phillipson, arsenic nan only furniture curate successful nan race, has been wide seen arsenic nan continuity candidate, a characterisation she rejects.

“It’s a funny aged world to beryllium apparently nan constitution candidate, fixed really overmuch of a kicking I’ve taken from nan constitution successful caller months,” she said, referring to disapproval complete her schoolhouse reforms arsenic good arsenic briefings that she would beryllium moved from acquisition secretary.

“Anyone who knows maine good knows that I’m my ain person. I’m independent-minded, I get things done and I’ll beryllium judged connected that basis, not judged done nan prism of others,” she said.

Powell has said she would springiness nan domiciled her full-time attraction and usage nan level to beryllium a constructive professional of nan authorities and correspond nan voices of mean members.

Phillipson said it was imaginable to besides proceed arsenic a personnel of nan cabinet, which was really nan domiciled had traditionally beryllium done. “No 1 ever suggested that Angela [Rayner] was a part-timer, aliases John Prescott aliases Harriet Harman were part-timers,” she said of past lawman leaders. “They were effective because they had a spot astatine nan table, not throwing stones successful public.”

Phillipson has agelong been talked of arsenic imaginable early Labour leader but she declined to opportunity explicitly if she thought Labour’s adjacent leader should beryllium a woman.

Asked if she recovered it frustrating that Andy Burnham, nan politician of Greater Manchester, was tipped truthful often arsenic a successor to Keir Starmer, she said: “Female politicians, and I’m nary different, do get a batch of nonsense. I’ve been underestimated astir of my life.”