Alex Salmond has been criticised after saying Hilary Benn’s father, Tony Benn, would be “birling in his grave” upon hearing his son argue for bombing Syria in the House of Commons.
Interviewed on LBC radio station, the SNP MP argued that the late Tony Benn, a longstanding Labour MP and left-wing icon within the party, would have not been pleased to hear the shadow foreign secretary’s speech.
“His father, whose speech I heard in the Iraq debate all these years ago, would be birling (spinning) in his grave hearing a speech in favour of a Tory prime minister wanting to take the country to war and that’s just a reality,” the former SNP leader told the station.
Questioned further on the comments by the programme’s presenter, he added: “I think that is fair political comment to contrast the view of the father and the son.”
“Birling” is a Scottish word meaning “spinning”.
Emily Benn, the granddaughter of Tony Benn, said later on social media that she was offended by the former Scottish first minister’s claim.
“Mr Salmond, Your comments are both deeply offensive and simply untrue. I hope you reflect and retract them,” she tweeted.
Hilary Benn last night received applause from all sides of the House of Commons for a speech in which he labelled the Isis militant group fascists and a said Labour had a tradition of international military intervention.
Another speech given by Tony Benn in 1992 opposing the first Gulf War and highlighting the double-standards of UK intervention in the Middle East had previously been widely shared on social media ahead of the vote.
On Wednesday, MPs ultimately voted overwhelmingly to extend the air strikes, though most Labour MPs and members of the shadow cabinet voted against the deployment.
Hilary Benn’s spokesperson had said he will be making no further comment on last night’s speech.
