Robert Jenrick has been condemned after he attacked the “importing hundreds of thousands of people from alien cultures who possess medieval attitudes” to the UK.
A former Tory adviser said his “blood is boiling” because of the remarks, while shadow home secretary Chris Philp distanced himself from his frontbench colleague.
Jenrick, who lost the Tory leadership race to Kemi Badenoch last year and is now shadow justice secretary, was commenting on the grooming gangs scandal, which saw groups of men from mainly Pakistani backgrounds target young girls.
The row has erupted again after safeguarding minister Jess Phillips turned down a request from Oldham Council for a government-led inquiry into the issue.
Posting on X on Saturday, Jenrick said: “The rule of law was abandoned to sustain the myth that diversity is our strength, destroying the lives of thousands of vulnerable white working class girls in the process.
“This appalling affair is the final nail in the coffin for liberals who still cling to the argument that Britain is an integration success story.
“The scandal started with the onset of mass migration. Importing hundreds of thousands of people from alien cultures, who possess medieval attitudes towards women, brought us here.”
Asked about Jenrick’s comments on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Philp said: “He would choose his words, I’ll choose mine. I haven’t used those words.”
On Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg on BBC1, Samuel Kasumu, who was a special adviser to Boris Johnson, said: “My blood is boiling because of what Robert Jenrick said.
“I don’t think that Elon Musk or Nigel Farage are the most dangerous individuals in our country. I think Robert Jenrick has the potential to be the most divisive person in our political history.
“I think some of his words over the last 12 months may result in some people maybe even dying because he has the potential to incite hatred in ways that I have never seen.”