Gary Lineker Hits Back At Tory MP’s “Dangerously Provocative” Remark & Retweets Criticism Of Gov’t Asylum Policy

deadline.com:

All eyes have been trained on Gary Lineker’s Twitter account since the Match of the Day host struck a deal with BBC management to return to work this weekend, and he has not disappointed.

In amongst numerous tweets about football, Lineker has slammed a Conservative MP for “outrageous and dangerously provocative” accusations against him and retweeted a video of former Prime Minister Theresa May’s criticism of the government’s proposed immigration bill.

Scroll down for both. Lineker responded angrily to a Conservative MP, Jonathan Gullis, who claimed during a Channel 4 News interview that the former England footballer had called people in the North of England “racist bigots and Nazis.” The clip and a screenshot was widely shared on Twitter and Lineker quote-tweeted one of these screenshots with the remark: “No he hasn’t and never would.

This is outrageous and dangerously provocative.” Lineker was stood down by the BBC last weekend for comparing the government’s language around its asylum policy to Nazi Germany and he at no point accused UK citizens of behaving like “racist bigots and Nazis.” He retweeted May’s outburst against the policy yesterday – another Channel 4 News clip – in which she used a parliamentary debate to say immigrants would “have the door to the UK shut in their face” under the government’s proposals.