Tory attitude to people in hard times is clear: Candidate says they should be ‘put down’
Francesca O’Brien: “Put down”.
It doesn’t take a genius to work out that if a new Conservative election candidate thinks people on benefits should be ‘put down’, they all do.
Why else would they have selected Francesca O’Brien to be Tory candidate for the Gower in Wales?
According to The Guardian: “In [Facebook] posts that have since been deleted, she wrote in January 2014: ‘Benefit Street..anyone else watching this?? Wow, these people are unreal!!!’
“In response to a friend’s comment, she wrote: ‘My blood is boiling, these people need putting down.’
“In further comments under her post, O’Brien apparently endorsed a friend’s suggestion for ‘twat a tramp Tuesday’ to ‘take your batts [sic] to the streets’.”
This is the “caring Conservatism” that David Cameron promoted back in 2010 – the kind that has put hundreds of thousands of people in early graves.
As shadow education secretary Angela Rayner said, ““his is absolutely disgusting and reveals the cruelty at the heart of the Tories’ benefits cuts. Universal credit was deliberately designed to punish people who are out of work.
“Many of us have relied on social security support at some point in our lives and it is nothing to be ashamed of. This person is not fit to be an MP and Boris Johnson should remove her as a candidate.”
No she isn’t – but if she were to go, then the Tories would have to apply the same criteria to their other candidates, and would probably end up with nobody to fight their campaign!
The Guardian article suggested that the comments “are likely to anger the thousands of people in Gower who rely on benefits. They will also strike a blow to the Conservatives’ hopes of winning the seat, with the constituency being a key marginal”.
Ms O’Brien has now apologised for the comments – because they have been brought to public attention? Why did she not apologise before? If she disagrees with them, why did she publish them?
She said, according to the BBC: “These comments were made off the cuff, a number of years ago.
“However, I accept that my use of language was unacceptable and I would like to apologise for any upset I have caused.”
Not exactly oozing with sincerity, was she?
So there you have it, folks.
If you want to sink your local Tory’s chances of re-election, dig up their comments on social media or find another way to reveal their true character. It’s what they say in unguarded moments that reveals what they really are.
Source: Tory candidate wrote people on Benefits Street should be ‘put down’ | Politics | The Guardian
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“Wow, these people are unreal” – no Francesca, they are absolutely real, real people going about their business, leading ordinary mundane lives, but filmed and edited to appear as transgressors to be marginalized by gullible Reactionaries like yourself. ( ‘Benefits Street’ ).
Ah, yes… she’s sorry her “use of language” was unacceptable. Weird how the right always think it’s the word choice and not the foulness within that inspires those words that people take issue with.
Boris Johnson repeatedly talks of ‘One Nation Conservatism’ which reminds me a great deal of George W. Bush’s ‘Compassionate Conservatism’ con-trick from the 2000 presidential election.