Brexit campaigner Andy Wigmore sparks furious race row with black Remainer after saying he ‘looks like Diane Abbott’
- Brexiteer Mr Wigmore compared Femi Oluwole to the Labour shadow minister
- Pro-EU MP Anna Soubry called Mr Wigmore’s comment ‘revolting racist abuse’
- Mr Wigmore was head of communications for the Leave.EU campaign in 2016
Brexit backer Andy Wigmore has sparked a furious row with Remain advocate Femi Oluwole after saying that the black campaigner ‘looks like Diane Abbott’.
Mr Wigmore, an associate of Nigel Farage and millionaire Brexit campaigner Arron Banks, took aim at Mr Oluwole in a row over the EU election results.
Questioning Mr Oluwole’s maths, he said: ‘Have you eaten Diane Abbott Femi?
‘You sound like her, you have a grasp of numbers second only to her AND you even look like her, although you have much more of [a] glowing complexion.’
Brexit campaigner Andy Wigmore (left), pictured in London with his associate, wealthy Leave backer Arron Banks (right), has sparked a furious row with a black Remain campaigner
Mr Wigmore infuriated Remain advocate Femi Oluwole (pictured) after saying that the black campaigner ‘looks like Diane Abbott’
The Twitter comment appeared to be a reference to Ms Abbott’s much-derided claims about Labour spending during the 2017 election campaign.
Mr Oluwole reacted angrily to what was immediately condemned as a ‘racist’ tweet, blaming Brexit Party leader Mr Farage for ‘unleashing’ prejudice as leader of the Brexit campaign.
He won support from pro-Remain MP Anna Soubry, who said: ‘Solidarity with my friend Femi Oluwole. No one should have to put up with this revolting racist abuse.
‘Wigmore, his mate Farage et al do not represent the majority of British people and it’s time we stood up to them beginning with reporting this to Twitter and the police.’
Mr Oluwole, who was in the frame as a unity Remain candidate for the Peterborough by-election before pulling out, also highlighted Mr Wigmore’s links to Donald Trump.
Mr Wigmore, an associate of Nigel Farage and millionaire Brexit campaigner Arron Banks, took aim at Mr Oluwole in a row over the EU election results
The Brexit backer appeared in an infamous picture with Mr Farage and the triumphant Mr Trump only days after the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Mr Wigmore and Mr Banks are two of the self-styled Bad Boys of Brexit, with close links to the Brexit Party leader.
The 52-year-old Mr Wigmore was head of communications for the Leave.EU campaign fronted by Mr Farage in the run-up to the 2016 referendum.
The online row last night erupted over the interpretation of last week’s European election results.
The Brexit Party won the most votes and seats but some pro-EU advocates have suggested that Remainer parties did better than pro-Brexit parties overall.
Mr Wigmore said that Mr Oluwole had a ‘grasp of numbers second only to Diane Abbott’ – an apparent reference to the Labour frontbencher’s much-derided interview in 2017
Mr Oluwole declared that parties opposed to a No Deal Brexit had won a majority of the vote last Thursday – with only Ukip, the Brexit Party and some Tories in favour.
Labour’s Emily Thornberry and former spin doctor Alastair Campbell – expelled from the party this week – have both argued along similar lines.
Mr Farage has labelled the Remainer claims ‘tosh’.
The reference to Ms Abbott dates back to the Labour frontbencher’s 2017 interview in which she could not say how much the party would spend on extra police officers.
She became a target of ridicule but the row has been overlaid with the frequent sexist and racist abuse aimed at her as one of Britain’s few black female MPs.