Boris Johnson has apologised after telling a Labour assembly member to “get stuffed” in a heated debate on London’s fire cuts.
Andrew Dismore accused the mayor of having lied to Londoners about the impact that the closure of ten fire stations would have. Johnson responded loudly, “Oh, get stuffed,” which prompted a wave of cries from Assembly members and the gallery.
The debate was already a particularly vigorous one on the scale of London politics, with members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) protesting in the gallery and saying that deaths from fire in the capital were actually going up. He reportedly slapped this remark down as being “completely wrong” before muttering “bollocks” under his breath.
London’s mayor recently approved the closure of ten fire stations and the loss of around 500 firefighter posts across the city, despite the fact that the majority of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority voted against the proposals. However, a two-thirds majority is needed to overrule any decisions by the mayor.
The number of fires that the London Fire Brigade (LFB) attends has been reduced by half in the past ten years, and the LFB disputes the FBU’s claims that 4 million Londoners will see slower response times from their fire service.
Apology
Mr. Johnson was immediately called on to withdraw his remark to Dismore, and he apologised. “It just popped out. I’m very sorry,” he said.
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