LONDON — Andrea Jenkyns, mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, departed a meeting with Communities Secretary Steve Reed and other metropolitan mayors on Thursday before its conclusion. An argument occurred between Jenkyns and Tracy Brabin during the meeting.
The meeting was convened to discuss devolving national government powers to metropolitan mayors under the Devolution Act. A segment of the meeting addressed social cohesion following the murder of Henry Nowak. Vickrum Digwa murdered Henry Nowak, and Digwa falsely reported to police that Nowak had racially abused him. This murder prompted demonstrations in Southampton where far-right activists were present, leading to violence and arrests.
Reed stated he believed non-state actors were deliberately attempting to divide communities by using social media. Reed attributed recent tensions in Southampton to hostile foreign actors. Jenkyns expressed opposition to comments regarding social media's role in community tensions, stating that social cohesion requires freedom of speech.
Jenkyns accused Labour figures of attempting to deflect criticism of Keir Starmer's handling of the murder case. Jenkyns said, "The claim that I stormed out is a total exaggeration by a panicked Labour party clutching at straws ahead of a byelection. I simply left the meeting 15 minutes early because I am not a person who can sit around and listen to hypocrisy. I stood up and calmly argued that true social cohesion is impossible without genuine freedom of speech, and that the current obsession with divisive identity politics and two-tier policing is leaving ordinary communities feeling completely unheard."
Reed said, "This government is serious about shifting power out of Westminster and into the hands of our mayors."