Labour's new Health Minister has sparked fiery clash on GB News after claiming that people can "identify as llamas".
Following the Government's WhatsApp scandal, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer appointed Ashley Dalton to replace outgoing minister Andrew Gwynne.
However, her appointment sparked controversy after a 2016 social media post resurfaced, where she claimed that if someone chose to identify "as a llama", they should be "treated with dignity and respect".
Discussing the claims on GB News, host Patrick Christys grew increasingly frustrated as commentator James Barr defended Dalton's stance on llamas, and dodged repeated probes on the issue.
As Patrick asked Barr how "someone who thinks that people can be animals be a health minister", Barr joked: "Where are the llamas in this conversation?"
Patrick laughed and pressed Barr for an answer again, with the commentator telling GB News: "I think the question is about llamas, really. If we're talking about llamas, we're talking about llamas, aren't we? Why are we asking a question of whether she should be near a position?"
Responding to Patrick's third probe, where he highlighted the issue of transgender women being allowed into female changing rooms, Barr then claimed: "I think this conversation is about llamas, but if you want to talk about women as men, I'm happy to do that.
"I think women's safety is hugely important, and I think Ashley knows exactly what how important women's safety is. But I don't know what llamas have to do with women's safety."
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Patrick then hit back, arguing: "It cuts to the point of the fact that we have someone who's a health minister who does not accept biological fact. Let me put this to you, James.
"If I said to you that I am choosing to identify now as a black man, would you accept that?"
Barr then joked that he would "clip that exact three seconds up and post that on social", to which Patrick fumed: "Come on, at least answer one question tonight? Do you not think it's ridiculous?"
Barr responded: "I think the tweet said something along the lines of, do you think a human can be a lama? And I think she replied in a comedic way, but if you ask a stupid question, you're going to get a stupid answer."
Patrick highlighted how Barr had hit the "core point" of the debate, and questioned whether Britain now has someone "stupid" as their new health minister.
Barr disagreed, stating: "No, we don't have an idiot as our health minister, I think we have someone that's trying to engage with a constituent or whoever it is that tweeted that originally, trying to engage with them and trying to make conversation.
"I think we have someone who cares about trans people and cares about women."
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Following the Government's WhatsApp scandal, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer appointed Ashley Dalton to replace outgoing minister Andrew Gwynne.
However, her appointment sparked controversy after a 2016 social media post resurfaced, where she claimed that if someone chose to identify "as a llama", they should be "treated with dignity and respect".
Discussing the claims on GB News, host Patrick Christys grew increasingly frustrated as commentator James Barr defended Dalton's stance on llamas, and dodged repeated probes on the issue.
As Patrick asked Barr how "someone who thinks that people can be animals be a health minister", Barr joked: "Where are the llamas in this conversation?"
Patrick laughed and pressed Barr for an answer again, with the commentator telling GB News: "I think the question is about llamas, really. If we're talking about llamas, we're talking about llamas, aren't we? Why are we asking a question of whether she should be near a position?"
Responding to Patrick's third probe, where he highlighted the issue of transgender women being allowed into female changing rooms, Barr then claimed: "I think this conversation is about llamas, but if you want to talk about women as men, I'm happy to do that.
"I think women's safety is hugely important, and I think Ashley knows exactly what how important women's safety is. But I don't know what llamas have to do with women's safety."
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Patrick then hit back, arguing: "It cuts to the point of the fact that we have someone who's a health minister who does not accept biological fact. Let me put this to you, James.
"If I said to you that I am choosing to identify now as a black man, would you accept that?"
Barr then joked that he would "clip that exact three seconds up and post that on social", to which Patrick fumed: "Come on, at least answer one question tonight? Do you not think it's ridiculous?"
Barr responded: "I think the tweet said something along the lines of, do you think a human can be a lama? And I think she replied in a comedic way, but if you ask a stupid question, you're going to get a stupid answer."
Patrick highlighted how Barr had hit the "core point" of the debate, and questioned whether Britain now has someone "stupid" as their new health minister.
Barr disagreed, stating: "No, we don't have an idiot as our health minister, I think we have someone that's trying to engage with a constituent or whoever it is that tweeted that originally, trying to engage with them and trying to make conversation.
"I think we have someone who cares about trans people and cares about women."
Find Out More...