Politics: MP Lee Anderson who backs death penalty and boycotted England games over players taking the knee visits Calderdale Conservatives

Lee Anderson, who this week was appointed deputy chairman of the Tory Party, visited Halifax to speak to local members at the end of last month.

They posted on social media afterwards: “It was fantastic to welcome Lee Anderson to Halifax last night!

"A captivating speech and straight talking Q and A. It went down very well with our audience.

"We look forward to welcoming members and supporters to more great events in the near future.”

And Mr Anderson said: “A real pleasure to be the guest speaker at Halifax Conservatives last night. A straight talking bunch who want the very best for our country.”

Mr Anderson has been in the news for his controversial comments on several occasions.

In an interview with The Spectator magazine published on Wednesday, the outspoken MP called for the return of the death penalty.

He said reintroducing capital punishment would be very effective because “nobody has ever committed a crime after being executed”.

He has also made several headline-making comments about the food bank usage.

This week he accused nurses of lying about needing food banks.

In May, he suggested that people would not need food parcels if they knew how to cook.

“We’ve got generation after generation who cannot cook properly, they can’t cook a meal from scratch, they cannot budget,” he said.

And in 2021 he vowed to boycott England’s games in the European Championship over players’ decision to take the knee before matches.

He said that by taking the knee – a symbolic gesture against racism - the England team was supporting a “political movement” and risked alienating “traditional supporters”.