Tory mayoral candidate Susan Hall responds to liking tweet praising Enoch Powell

Tory London mayoral candidate Susan Hall said she “didn’t intend to cause offence” after a string of tweets stirred up controversy online.

She told an LBC phone-in she “can’t remember” supporting a post by Katie Hopkins and brushed aside liking a tweet with a picture of former Conservative minister Enoch Powell saying: “If you’re a serial tweeter, you tend to go through liking all sorts of things.

“If anybody is offended, then obviously I would apologise.”

Any offence “wasn’t intended”, she insisted.

Enoch Powell’s Rivers of Blood speech in 1968 delivered a scathing attack on UK immigration.

Challenged over a derogatory tweet about TOWIE star Gemma Collins Ms Hall added:

“People will throw these tweets at me and I accept it and if I offended anybody, I apologise.”

She was unable to say whether she would have sacked Dame Cressida Dick, over a year on from the former Metropolitan Police Commissioner leaving office.

Dame Cressida Dick Credit: Jonathan Brady/PA

“Things are going very wrong in the Met. Sadiq Khan blames everybody for anything going wrong.

Asked if she would have kept her in place: “I don’t know is the honest answer.”

Referencing a review by Sir Tom Winsor into her exit, she said: “The way she was treated was appalling and nobody in any job should be treated so badly.”

Asked about the construction of HS2 said she would “obviously prefer HS2 to run all the way to Euston rather than stopping short in the capital’s western suburbs.

Asked whether the Old Oak Common stop is what she wants for London, she said: “No, it isn’t. And I want the (whole HS2) thing to go ahead. Of course I do.

“But equally, the Government have got to watch to see how much it’s costing and if they’re trying to negotiate now with everybody saying: ‘It doesn’t matter how much it costs, it’s got to go ahead’, it would put them in a difficult position.”

Ms Hall said ministers have not been in touch with her about this “specific issue”, saying: “To be fair, they’ve got much bigger things to think about at the moment.”

Pressed on whether she is frustrated with central Government over HS2, she said: “I’m frustrated by very many things. I’m mostly frustrated by Sadiq Khan.”

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know…