London Assembly chair ejected during Braverman speech

Andrew Boff accused the home secretary of making the Tories look "transphobic"

A Conservative London Assembly member was ejected from Suella Braverman's party conference speech after objecting to her comments on transgender issues.

During the home secretary's speech, Andrew Boff was heard saying: "There's no such thing as gender ideology."

He was quickly approached by officials and police officers and then removed from the conference venue.

Mr Boff sits as the chair of the London Assembly and has been a London-wide member since 2008.

In her set-piece speech at the conference in Manchester, Ms Braverman criticised "gender ideology, white privilege" and anti-British history, adding: "The evidence demonstrates that if you don't challenge this poison, things just get worse."

'Vilifying gay people'

Speaking to reporters as he was led from the conference centre, Mr Boff hit out at the home secretary's "fictitious" take on gender ideology.

He said: "It is making our Conservative Party look transphobic and homophobic.

"Our party has a proud record of standing up for LGBT+ rights and she is destroying it."

Mr Boff, who said he had been a member of the party for more than 50 years, told the PA news agency: "This home secretary was basically vilifying gay people and trans people by this attack on LGBT ideology, or gender ideology. It is fictitious, it is ridiculous.

"It is a signal to people who don't like people who are LGBT+ people."

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He added: "Words like that in the forum of the party that I love need to be challenged."

Ms Braverman later said Mr Boff's comments during her speech were "silly" but added that he should be "forgiven and let back into conference".

BBC News has contacted the London Assembly Conservatives for comment.

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