I HAVE commented previously on the use of hate speech by political extremists of all hues.

The online forums are awash with comments from all swathes of opinion from Momentum activists on the left to Britain First on the right.

It was depressing and worrying on BBC Question Time on January 11 to see politicians from the two major parties desperate to downplay, or deny, that there was a problem with members of their own party.

A Conservative MP repeatedly downplayed the extremely offensive comments made on a wide range of topics including disability and gender by Tory journalist Toby Young.

The latter had been rightly forced to resign from a university post he should not have been given in the first place.

A Labour MP was very willing to criticise Young but saw nothing wrong in Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell agreeing with threatening comments about Conservative MP Esther McVey around her being a “stain on humanity.”

That it should be deemed acceptable for a man like McDonnell to aspire to high office with views like that is highly disturbing.

It’s high time politicians across the political spectrum recognise that their words are inflaming and encouraging hate speech and setting a good example to the public is far more important than adhering to petty tribal loyalties.

John Crick, Bishop Auckland