Victims of Jimmy Saville have accused Boris Johnson of using their experiences to climb out of a “political hole”, the lawyer representing them has claimed.
Richard Scorer, head of abuse and public inquiries at law firm Slater and Gordon, said his clients were “appalled and disgusted” at baseless comments made by the prime minister in clashes with Keir Starmer.
During a Commons debate on Sue Gray’s partygate report, Johnson accused the Labour leader, a former Director of Public Prosecutions, of “failing to prosecute” the notorious sex offender.
According, to the fact-checking charity Full Fact, Starmer may have been head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) when it was decided Savile would not be prosecuted he was not the lawyer reviewing the case.
Speaking to the Mirror, Mr Scorer said: ”[The victims] are universally appalled and disgusted by those remarks and want him to apologise.
“They also feel he should withdraw those remarks.”
Despite the wave of criticism, Downing Street today said the PM “stands by what he said”.
Responding to the row on ITV this morning, Starmer said it was a “ridiculous slur peddled by right-wing trolls”.
Meanwhile, Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has also criticised the PM’s remarks, saying he was “far from satisfied” with what he said.
Asked to rule on whether Johnson’s remarks had broken Parliamentary rules, Hoyle said: “Procedurally, nothing disorderly occurred, but such allegations should not be made lightly, especially in view of the guidance in [parliamentary rule book] Erskine May about good temper, moderation being the characteristics of a parliamentary debate.
“While they may not have been disorderly, I am far from satisfied that the comments in question were appropriate on this occasion. I want to see more compassionate, reasonable politics in this House and these sort of comments can only inflame opinions and generate disregard for this House.
“I want a nicer parliament, and the only way we can get a nicer parliament is being more honourable in the debates that we have. Let us show each other respect as well as tolerance going forward.”