Tory donor’s comments about Diane Abbott ‘racist and wrong’, No 10 says

Statement from Downing Street follows cross-party criticism of Frank Hester’s remarks about former Labour MP

Downing Street has described remarks made about Diane Abbott by the Conservatives’ biggest donor as “racist and wrong” after senior politicians from across the political spectrum piled pressure on Rishi Sunak to intervene.

No 10 and Conservative ministers initially stopped short of making that criticism of Frank Hester’s remarks, after the Guardian reported on Monday that the businessman said in a 2019 meeting that looking at Abbott made you “want to hate all black women” and said the MP “should be shot”.