LONDON: Opposition leaders and former mining communities on Friday attacked at Prime Minister Boris Johnson for joking that former coal leader Margaret Thatcher had gave Britain to combat climate change.
Thatcher, in power from 1979 to 1990, fighting bitter battle with coal miners in the 1980s, providing industrial death trails that associated by closing more than 100 mines, a devastating community in North England, South Wales and Scotland.
Walkout throughout the year against the closing plan by miners in 1984-85 is one moment defining the premiership, eroding the strength of the union and accelerating its free market reform.
Johnson commented on a visit to offshore wind farms in Scotland on Thursday, when he talked about changes in a mixture of British energy ahead of the UN COP26 COP26 climate summit at Glasgow in November.
“Thank you to Margaret Thatcher, who close so many coal mines throughout the country, we have a better start and we are now fast moving from coal at all,” he said.
Johnson’s spokesman on Friday refused to apologize, said “Prime Minister recognizes the great impact and pain closing coal mines in the community throughout the UK”.
But the risk of quip backfires with voters in the former mining streaking in northern England, which turned from delivery to its conservatives in the last general election in 2019, mostly over Brexit.
Newspapers are also confiscated in comments, with a daily mirror that supports the protruding traditional workpock “Johnson is a hole”.
Keep Labor Party leader Starmer said: “Praise Boris Johnson embarrassing from the closure of Margaret Thatcher, getting rid of the awesome impact on the communities with laughter, showing how untanged by the people who work.” Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford, also delivery, told BBC Radio comments “Crass and Offensive”, by saying the closure caused “countless” damage to the local community.
Johnson failed to meet the first minister of Nicola Sturgeon on a two-day visit to Scotland, where feeling was still high on Tories because of the Thatcher policy.
Sturgeon said the community throughout Scotland was “completely destroyed by the destruction of the coal industry”.
He has repeatedly criticized Johnson because of handling Pandemic response Coronavirus and his refusal to allow the second referendum on Scottish independence.
Alan Mardghum, Secretary of the Durham Miner Association in the Northeast of England, said Johnson was guilty of showing “total insults” and re-writing history.
“The intentional destruction of the coal industry causes social and economic destruction in our community that is still felt today,” he said.
“The government Thatcher increases coal imports to more than 40 million tons per year, often mined by child labor in developing countries.” Grahame Morris, a member of the working parbo in Durham, said the Thatcher attack on mining “has nothing to do with saving the environment”.
“It is an attack with a way of life, in trade unions and in communities that are not suitable with the brand ver-free market conservatism that is worshiping money, speculation, the city of London and the greed of the community and society.”