Labour frontbencher Kate Osamor has resigned from her role hours after she verbally abused a journalist who doorstepped her over her son’s drug dealing conviction last night.
The MP for Edmonton reacted angrily and allegedly lashed out at a reporter outside of her £700,000 North London home when the Times journalist asked for comment regarding her son’s employment in her office.
Miss Osamor found herself at the centre of a nepotism row when it was revealed she had made Ishmael her senior communications officer in April 2016.
And when the 29-year-old was found guilty of drug offences in October Miss Osamor again found herself in the spotlight.
She defended keeping him in his £50,000-a-year job by claiming she had been unaware of his crimes at the time. It yesterday emerged however that she had in fact known, and had sent letters of correspondence to the judge requesting leniency.
When approached by reporters at her house last night, Miss Osamor, who is Labour’s International Development spokesperson, said she ‘should have come down here with a bat and smashed your face in’.
She threw a bucket of water over the reporter and called the police.
Today she said in a statement: ‘I am resigning from my role as International Development secretary to concentrate on supporting my family through the difficult time we have been experiencing.’
Ishmael Osamor (left) and his MP mother Kate Osamor (right)
Jeremy Corbyn MP, Leader of the Labour Party, said: ‘I have accepted Kate Osamor’s resignation and would like to thank her for her work as our Shadow Secretary of State for International Development.
‘She brought a new dimension to the role by committing Labour to tackling global inequality as well as poverty as part of building a world for the many not the few.
‘I know Kate will take this time to support her family, work for her constituents and support our party’s efforts to rebuild Britain from the backbenches.’
Kate Osamor (right) voted for Jeremy Corbyn (left) to become labour leader
Ishmael was found with drugs worth £2,500 at the Bestival music festival in Dorset in 2017 and was given a community sentence on October 19.
Ishmael, who worked full time in his mother’s office and lives with her in a £700,000 housing association property near Turnpike Lane in North London, pleaded guilty to four charges of possession with intent to supply cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine and cannabis on September 18.
His case was adjourned for pre-sentence reports. The prosecution accepted he was looking after the drugs for friends and not selling.
Ishmael Osamor (pictured above) was previously sentenced to community service after being found with up to £2,500 worth of Class A and B drugs
On October 19 Judge Stephen Climie said he had received five references that played a ‘significant’ part in determining Ishmael’s sentence – 200 hours of unpaid work.
The details emerged after a legal application was successfully made to the courts by The Times and other media outlets.
Arguing that the information about Ishmael’s sentencing decision was in the public interest, they asked for publication of the five letters written in his support.
Judge Climie responded: ‘I accept that the public are entitled to understand the reasoning for a sentence being passed.’
Although the letters were not released, Judge Climie did identify three of their authors, which included Ishmael, his partner and his mother, who is the MP for Edmonton in north London.
The Labour Party had repeatedly claimed Miss Osamor, 50, did not know about the case until October 26. Both the party and Miss Osamor were contacted for comment last night.