Senior Labour politicians Liam Byrne and Tom Watson ‘attend segregated Muslim rally’

From the Telegraph

Senior Labour politicians attended a rally where Asian men and women were apparently separated along gender lines.

UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage said the event, which was attended by Liam Byrne and Tom Watson, was rejecting “a century and more of advancement for women’s rights”.

It emerged today that Parliamentary candidates Tom Watson, Liam Byrne, Khalid Mahmood and Jack Dromey, along with MEP Sion Simon, attended the political rally in Birmingham. Pictures posted on Sion Simon’s Twitter feed showed Muslim women sitting in a small cluster on one side of what looked like an Islamic community centre with the men seated opposite.

Mr Farage told LBC’s phone-in: “There was a meeting that took place in Hodge Hill in Birmingham . . .That meeting took place in Hodge Hill. It was a political Labour party meeting. It was a segregated meeting. Men sat on the right hand side and women sat on the left hand side. And if that is not giving in, if that is not turning our backs on a century and more of advancement for women’s rights than I don’t know what it is. 

“I believe that has got no place in modern civilised Britain and unless we are prepared to stand up for who we are then we will be bullied by some of those extreme elements.

“I want to know from the labour party how in the name of your party can you have allowed that to have happened.”

When challenged by a Sunday newspaper, Mr Mahmood, candidate for Perry Bar, admitted he attended but said: “And?”

When asked whether he thought it appropriate to address a segregated audience, he appeared flustered and said: “I didn’t organise it. You’ll have to speak to the organisers.”

Mr Watson, Mr Dromey and Mr Byrne declined to return messages from the Telegraph