George Galloway, the former Respect MP who is seeking re-election in Bradford, has been accused of “petty threats” by his local brewery. The Bradford Brewery initially made a joke towards him, but was met with an angry response that culminated in Galloway reporting them to West Yorkshire Police.
After the brewery asked him if he was “still a thing” the politician said it should not make jokes about him as it is a “licensed premises in my constituency” (sic). When the Brewery pointed out that he was no-longer an MP due to the election, and therefore it was not his constituency Galloway said: “I shall return to this matter after the election. You have been most unwise”.
Ominously he then said: “Your premises are a constant source of complaints to me. I will be in touch about those in due course”. As an MP Galloway has the right to complain about anyone with an alcohol license, and the local council has the power to take it away leaving the company unable to sell its products.
Mr Galloway is a teetotal who has previously stated he finds drunkenness offensive, he has also consistently refused to answer whether he has converted to Islam. Bradford Council itself has a huge Muslim contingent, and although they do not publish the religion of their councillors, seven have the surname Hussein and there are four Cllr Khan’s.
The Deputy Leader of the Council is one of the Cllr Hussein’s and the Chief Whip is one of the Khan’s. Meaning that the fate of the Brewery could be decided by a Muslim Councillor who finds the drinking of alcohol offensive. Although this would not mean they got an unfair hearing it would create the impression of a conflict of interest. There is no mechanism for banning teetotal Muslims from involvement in these cases.
The town itself already has a number of Sharia Courts already. Local Mosques have offered to improve the quality of Islamic justice after a Panorama programme exposed the poor treatment of women under the system.
Galloway is no stranger to controversy and has a strong track record of backing Islamic causes, including Hamas. He is also a presenter on the Iranian governments’ Western propaganda TV station Press TV.
He became MP for Bradford West after winning a by-election in the town in 2012, he had previously been elected in Tower Hamlets. At the time the BBC political interviewer, Jeremy Paxman, accused him of “exploiting the latent racial tensions” in the area.
It is unclear what action Galloway will take against the Brewery, and if the Police will now get involved. But any complaint to the local council could result in their license being revoked.
The full exchange is below:
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