Politician criticized

GB: Smoking ban compared to the Holocaust

Esther McVey

(Bild: Action Press/AFP)

A British Tory MP has compared plans for a stricter smoking ban to the Holocaust, sparking outrage. 

In response to the plan, Esther McVey posted on X the admonition of German pastor Martin Niemöller, who criticized the passivity and indifference of society and the church during the Holocaust after the Second World War. It also includes the line "When they took the Jews, I kept quiet, I wasn't Jewish".

"Frighteningly thoughtless"
The Board of Deputies of British Jews, a Jewish lobby group, strongly condemned McVey's post, calling it "repulsive" and "appallingly thoughtless".

Numerous users, including Health Minister Wes Streeting, called on the 56-year-old to delete the post. Streeting pointed out that McVey's own party, the Conservatives, had also planned to tighten anti-tobacco laws in their election manifesto.

"Meaning of my words twisted"
Shortly before midnight, she published a statement. The accusations were "ridiculous" and no "insult was intended". The politician also rejected further criticism in an X-Post. She would not be intimidated by "big city bullies with a politically correct attitude" who "deliberately twist the meaning of my words". Rather, she said, it was an analogy: "Those who ban freedoms start with simple targets."

Catering associations criticize plans
Previously, new Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer had confirmed in principle that his government wants to extend the outdoor smoking ban. According to reports, smoking is to be banned in beer gardens, outside sports facilities and hospitals as well as in small parks, among other places. Catering associations have sharply criticized the plans and warned of a nail in the coffin for British pubs.