‘Typical Indian’ Comment About Irish PM Was a Mistake, Says House of Lords Member

Former Ulster Unionist Party MP John Taylor, now Lord John Kilclooney has admitted that his tweet in which he referred to Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar as a “typical Indian” was a mistake, BBC reported.

Saying that he realized that his remark may have offended some people, Lord Kilclooney added that the tweet has now been removed. “And that’s why I removed it. I am certainly not racist at all. And that why I am so pleased the Indian chairman of our organization in London thanked for the work I have done for the Indian community,” he said.

Lord Kilclooney, however, said that he will not apologize for the comment he made on the social media. He would continue to tweet, he added. “It was a mistake and that’s why I did away with it. I’m not apologizing. I have removed the tweet because it was a mistake,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

“A lot of people have sent messages congratulating me on what I have tweeted. You’ve got to see both sides of the argument. And when I realize I have made a mistake I remove it,” Lord Kilclooney said, Belfast Telegraph reported.

Lord Kilclooney faced flak for calling Varadkar a “typical Indian” on the social media recently. His comments were labelled as racist by many and came after Varadkar’s visit to Northern Ireland. Lagan Valley MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson criticized Varadkar following the visit, saying the Taoiseach showed “poor manners” by not informing a local representative about his visit to counties Armagh and Down on April 29. It was “outside of normal protocol,” Donaldson said, BBC had reported earlier.

Regarding allegations of being racist, Lord Kilclooney emphasized that he was “pro-Indian” and that he has worked for the Indian community. “I have worked for the Indian community in London and throughout the United Kingdom, I have a great admiration for them,” he said, adding that the tweet was in response to something.

He told BBC that if Varadkar had been an Englishman, he would have said “typical Englishman” because the “English have no understanding of the internal affairs of Northern Ireland. I’ve discovered that from my experience in London. Indians wouldn’t have much understanding either; Pakistanis no understanding – typical.”

He added that he can understand the fact that people outside Northern Ireland do not understand the political situation there. “As far as being anti-Indian? Ridiculous,” he said.

When asked about Lord Kilclooney’s tweet, Varadkar, on May 1, said, “In terms of Lord Kilclooney’s tweet, I did see it. I actually had thought that was a parody account, but seemingly it’s not. It actually is for real, but that’s all I’ll say about that.”