GB News suspends Laurence Fox over comments about journalist Ava Evans

Image source, PA Media

GB News has suspended host Laurence Fox after he denigrated a journalist and asked what "self-respecting man" would "climb into bed" with her.

The actor's comments were made in a live discussion after PoliticsJOE reporter Ava Evans said on the BBC that calls for a minister for men "feed into the culture war".

Evans said Fox's remarks made her feel "physically sick".

GB News said it would formally apologise to Ms Evans.

The broadcaster distanced itself from Fox's comments shortly after they were aired, with a statement describing the remarks as "totally unacceptable".

In a later statement issued on Wednesday morning, a GB News spokesperson said: "GB News has formally suspended Laurence Fox while we continue our investigation into comments he made on the channel last night.

"Mr Fox's suspension is effective immediately and he has been taken off air. We will be apologising formally to Ms Evans today."

Fox - who unsuccessfully ran to be London mayor in 2021 - said "I stand by every word of what I said" in a social media post on Wednesday morning.

The BBC discussion took place on Monday's episode of Politics Live and featured Evans alongside comedian and commentator Geoff Norcott, who raised the issue of men's mental health and the fact that, for men under 50, suicide remains the biggest cause of death.

When the host mentioned a call by a Conservative MP for a dedicated minister to address such issues, Evans - who is the political correspondent for online news platform PoliticsJOE - said: "I think that it feeds into the culture war a little bit, this minister for men argument.

"[Mental illness] is a crisis that's endemic throughout the country, not specific to men. And I think a lot of ministers bandy this about to - I'm sorry - make an enemy out of women."

She later said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the comments had been "a little rash" and that she was "actually very interested in a brief for a minister on young men's mental health".

Fox, who hosts his own show on GB News, was asked about the exchange while appearing as a guest on another of the channel's programmes, Dan Wootton Tonight, on Tuesday.

"We're past the watershed so I can say this. Show me a single self-respecting man that would like to climb into bed with that woman - ever, ever," he said.

"That little woman has been fed, spoon-fed oppression day after day after day.

"And she's sat there and I'm going like, 'If I met you in a bar and that was like sentence three, [the] chances of me just walking away are just huge.

"We need powerful strong, amazing women who make great points for themselves."

He then added: "Who'd want to shag that?"

Reacting on the same platform alongside a video clip of the exchange between Fox and Wootton, Evans said: "Laurence Fox just did a whole speech on GB News on why men apparently won't shag me? I feel physically sick."

Host Wootton, who could be seen laughing at points as Fox spoke, later apologised on X, writing: "Dear @AvaSantina. I think you're brilliant.

"I apologise for what was said during the course of my show and should have done this immediately on air. This is not what our channel is about."

Fox's comments attracted widespread condemnation, including from Labour MP and shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry, who tagged media regulator Ofcom into a post on X in an apparent call for it to intervene.

"British television should never subject women to this sort of abuse," she said.

Ofcom said it had received "a number of complaints" about Fox's comments which it was "assessing" against its broadcast rules.