EXCL Brexit debate partly responsible for Jo Cox murder, says Commons priest
2 min read
Politicians were partly to blame for the tragic killing of Jo Cox because of the atmosphere created by the EU referendum debate, the chaplain for the Houses of Parliament has said.
Reverend Rose Hudson-Wilkin said the "unpleasant discourse" in the UK at that time contributed to the circumstances which led to the Labour MP's brutal murder.
In an interview with the House Magazine, the Church of England priest and Speaker’s Chaplain also hit out at Conservative MP Sir Christopher Chope for blocking the bill to ban upskirting - suggesting his move was childish and immature.
Batley and Spen MP Ms Cox was shot and stabbed by white supremacist Thomas Mair at the height of the EU referendum campaign in 2016.
Eyewitnesses said he shouted "Britain first, keep Britain independent" during the attack.
Rev Hudson-Wilkin - who leads prayers in the House of Commons and offers pastoral care to MPs and peers - said: "I really hope that her death was not in vain and that, in the heat of the political debate, her colleagues will never forget how she died.
“I believe very strongly that the kind of debate we were having, that kind of unpleasant discourse, contributed towards her death. I think that we must carry some of that responsibility.”
Rev Hudson-Wilkin also hit out at MPs who talk out backbench bills - known as filibustering - and called out Christchurch MP Sir Christopher after he used a one word objection to block the upskirting ban.
He was admonished by figures from across the political divide when he shouted "object" in the Commons as the bill to ban people taking photos up women's skirts was read out in the House.
Rev Hudson-Wilkin argued: “We must be able to, as a significant democracy, find better ways of dealing with these issues.
“That might have been the 18th & 19th century way of handling things. We are now in the 21st century and we want to see things done differently.”
She added: "In our ‘game playing’ we can forget the human issues that people are attempting to deal with.
“So when we say we don’t like Private Members Bills, okay let’s find a grown-up, mature alternative way of handling these things.
“Don’t just treat it with such frivolity. We are a leading democracy – other parts of the world look to us.”
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