Minister sacked over WhatsApp group called voter a ‘hag’ and mocked her house in sweary rant

Andrew Gwynne joked about killing a fellow MP with a pickaxe and said a prominent community member should be bullied. A former minister sacked over “sexist” and “racist” WhatsApp messages reportedly called a voter a “hag” and said she lives in a “s***” house. Days after he was sacked by Sir Keir Starmer and suspended by Labour, fresh messages have emerged suggesting Andrew Gwynne joked about killing a fellow MP with a pickaxe and said a prominent community member should be bullied.

Mr Gwynne appeared to describe the constituent as a “massive b****”, while other members of the Trigger Me Timbers WhatsApp group joked about how the “fat” woman needed to exercise more. In the latest messages, seen by The Telegraph, Mr Gwynne reportedly asked in a discussion about the constituent: “Is there a how to bully… online course?”. Labour has suspended the whip from Mr Gwynne as well as fellow MP Oliver Ryan, who was elected in July, over his involvement in the group.

The party has also suspended 11 Labour councillors, including Mr Gwynne’s wife, for being part of the WhatsApp group. The group’s members come from Tameside and Stockport councils. Mr Gwynne left government and was suspended from Labour at the weekend after reports he had sent messages to the group including a joke about a constituent being “mown down” by a truck. He also said hoped a 72-year-old woman would soon die after she asked a councillor about bin collections.

The MP for Gorton and Denton in Greater Manchester said he deeply regretted his “badly misjudged comments” and apologised for “any offence caused” in a statement. Mr Ryan said he had been a member of the group between 2019 and 2022 and regretted not “speaking out at the time” over comments which were “completely unacceptable”. The latest messages reportedly show Mr Gwynne discussing canvassing on a road locally where he said he “lost his s***” with someone, adding that the resident’s house was “the s******** on the street”.

The Telegraph also reveal he joked about killing a left-wing fellow Labour MP with a pickaxe like Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky. Discussing Trotsky’s death, Mr Gwynne said: “We could re-enact it for him. He can be Leon. Anyone got a pickaxe?”. MPs Mr Gwynne and Mr Ryan have been suspended while Labour investigates the extent of the messages in the group, and could lose the Labour whip altogether. The Conservatives have called for Mr Gwynne to step down as an MP and force a by-election over the messages.

Meanwhile Greater Manchester Police has recorded a “non-crime hate incident” over Mr Gwynne’s comments in the WhatsApp group. A Labour Party spokesperson said: "As part of our WhatsApp group investigation, a group of councillors have been administratively suspended from the Labour Party. “As soon as this group was brought to our attention, a thorough investigation was launched in line with the Labour Party's rules and procedures and this process is ongoing. Swift action will always be taken where individuals are found to have breached the high standards expected of them as Labour Party members.".