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Tory MP Mark Francois criticised for using 'outdated' racial slur

Labour MP Sarah Owen asks the Speaker how to "discourage" the use of such phrases, as used by Mark Francois in the Commons

Tory MP Mark Francois has been criticised for using an "outdated" racial slur in the House of Commons.

Mr Francois said he meant "no disrespect or offence" when he referred to Japanese people as "Japs" in the chamber on Monday.

Labour's Sarah Owen, the first MP of South-East Asian descent, said the "crass racial slur has fallen well below the bar we should expect".

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle urged MPs to choose their words "carefully".

He added that he recognised "the casual use of racial terms causes upset and should not be used".

Mr Francois used the term during defence questions, saying: "Given the defence budget is likely to come under great pressure, why does it take BAE Systems 11 years to build a ship the Japs can build in four?"

Neither Sir Lindsay nor Defence Secretary Ben Wallace condemned the use of the term, which has not been regularly used in the Commons since the 1940s, during the session.

Raising a point of order the following day, Ms Owen, who has represented Luton North since 2019, said: "Mr Speaker, you rightly and regularly remind us to use respectful language in this House, but unfortunately, this outdated and crass racial slur has fallen well below the bar we should expect."

She added: "Could you please advise me on how we can discourage all members of this House from using ethnic slurs such as this because progress is not inevitable, it is something that we must consistently and constantly strive for."

In response, Sir Lindsay said the guide to parliamentary procedure states that "good temper and moderation are the characteristics of the parliamentary language and [I] ask all members to remind themselves of that principle in choosing the words they use carefully."

He added: "People reflect also the language that we use - if we set the best of language, therefore others might follow."

In a statement, Mr Francois said: "I meant absolutely no disrespect or offence to anyone by using the phrase 'Japs', during defence questions in the House of Commons yesterday.

"I merely used it as an abbreviation for Japanese, as I had, by then, been asking an admittedly rather wordy question, about naval shipbuilding.

"Moreover, in the course of that same question, as the record clearly shows, I actually complimented the Japanese shipbuilding industry, for building warships much faster than here in Britain."