- MP Esther McVey criticized for using Holocaust poem against smoking ban
- Board of Deputies of British Jews demands an apology for “repugnant” comparison
- McVey defends analogy, stating no offense was intended
Conservative MP Esther McVey has been branded “repugnant” for adopting a Holocaust poem to attack the government’s proposals for stricter outdoor smoking regulations.
The Tatton MP published a piece of Martin Niemoller’s 1946 poem “First They Came” on social media with the caption: “Pertinent words about Starmer’s smoking ban.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews urged the former cabinet minister to apologize for the “breathtakingly thoughtless comparison.
Ms. McVey later stated that she was not associating smoking bans outside pubs with Nazi persecution of Jews and that “no offense was intended.”
She also stated that she would “not be bullied” into erasing the post on X.
The poem, concerning some Germans’ passivity in the face of Nazi crimes, contains the lines: “Then they came for the Jews. And I did not speak up. “Because I was not Jewish.”
In response to Ms McVey’s post, the Board of Deputies of British Jews stated: “Using Martin Niemoller’s poem about the horrors of the Nazis to describe a potential smoking ban is an ill-considered and repugnant action.”
We urgently urge Tatton’s MP to delete her tweet and apologize for making such a careless analogy.
Rabbi David Mason, executive director of the Jewish Council for Racial Equality, called the post “utterly tasteless.
“
Health Secretary Wes Streeting replied to her post: No, I do not believe Martin Niemöller’s post-war confession regarding the passive
collaboration of the German intelligentsia and clergy in the Nazi rise to power is relevant to the Smoking Bill, which was included in both your and our manifestos to address one of the most severe killers.
“Get a grip.”
Ms McVey later issued a statement on X justifying her initial tweet.
“No one is arguing that prohibiting smoking outside pubs is analogous to what happened to Jews under Nazi rule. She wrote, “It is ridiculous for anyone even to suggest that was what I was doing.”
“It is known as an analogy: those who restrict freedoms begin with easy targets and gradually increase their reach.
I’m sure everyone understands what I was saying and realizes that no disrespect was ever intended, and no equivalency was claimed.
She went further: “I will not be bullied into removing a tweet by people who are deliberately twisting the meaning of my words and finding offense when they know none was intended.”
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On Thursday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer stated that the government contemplated prohibiting smoking in some outdoor regions in England.
The Sun tabloid reported that the government was considering expanding the indoor smoking ban to bar gardens, university and hospital campuses, sports fields, and children’s playgrounds.
Health experts applauded the plans, but some ministers expressed concern about the potential impact on the hospitality industry.
Conservative Shadow Health Secretary Victoria Atkins and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage were among those who spoke out against the proposal.
When asked about the Sun article, Sir Keir stated that smoking-related deaths were “preventable” and that “we’ve got to take action to reduce the burden on the NHS and the taxpayer.
Earlier this year, the previous Conservative government proposed legislation prohibiting the sale of cigarettes to anyone born in or after 2009.
The incoming Labour government has advanced plans for a phased smoking ban and has committed to passing legislation.
