Leave.EU deletes 'insulting and offensive' tweet of Angela Merkel

9 October 2019, 09:20

Brexit campaign group Leave.EU has deleted an "insulting and offensive" social media post about Angela Merkel after it was condemned by MPs.

Leave.EU was forced to delete its post after ministers such as Michael Gove criticised its "racist or demeaning language".

The post, which was shared across the group's online channels, shows the German Chancellor with her hand raised in a pose which has been likened to a Nazi salute. She is clearly waving in the photo.

"We didn’t win two world wars to be pushed around by a kraut,” the post states in black and red capital letters.

In a tweet this morning, co-founder of the Leave.EU campaign Arron Banks said the Leave EU team "went too far yesterday" and that they "apologise accordingly".

He also said in his post: "The real outrage is the German suggestion that Northern Ireland be separated from the UK.

Leave.EU took to Twitter to post the "offensive" advert saying that Angela Merkel wanted Northern Ireland to "rot inside the customs union".

This came after details of a phone call between the German Chancellor and Boris Johnson were leaked to the press.

Mrs Merkel is said to have told the Prime Minister on Tuesday that a Brexit agreement is “overwhelmingly unlikely”.

In the House of Commons on Tuesday, MP Chris Leslie said: "Can I urge the minister to pause and reflect on the deliberate dog whistle briefing put out this morning by No 10 against Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, in the phone call apparently as reported between herself and the PM, which of course has then sparked a series of frankly racist attacks against the Germans from Leave.EU and others."

The Deputy Leader of The Independent Group for Change continued: "This is an extremely dangerous course for the government to embark on, and I want to hear right now the minister condemn it and distance himself from it."

Michael Gove also criticised the tweet saying: ""I take this opportunity to entirely disassociate myself from any racist or demeaning language against Germany.

"They are our friends, they are our allies, they are a great country."

Mr Gove's comments were supported by speaker John Bercow, who added: "I must say to the chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster that statement will be very warmly welcome across the House, but also by a great many outside this place, whatever their views on Brexit."