Zarah Sultana issues furious response to Observer cartoon apology

The National

5 days ago

The former Labour MP was pictured in a cartoon by Saffron Swire which mocked Sultana and Corbyn's plans for a new political party. It has now been taken down following a flurry of negative comments.
The cartoon was based on an "invitation" to Corbyn's "party" and depicts the ex-Labour leader wearing 1970s disco attire which is branded with the Communist Party logo.
A speech bubble next to Corbyn reads "let's paint the town red!" while the RSVP address lists the House of Commons.
In the corner of the cartoon, there was an image of a "goodie bag" containing a box of raisins saying "Zarah Sultanas" on it, with the image of a "brownfaced" version of the famous Sun-Maid woman in the company's logo.
After accusations of racism were fired at the paper, The Observer released a one-line apology and took down the cartoon from its website.
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It said: "We are genuinely sorry for causing offence and we are taking the cartoon down."
Sultana has since posted a furious response to the apology adding she had not had any direct contact from the paper.
She posted on Twitter/X: "This is mealy-mouthed and refuses to call it what it is: racism.
"It doesn't even have the decency to name me, let alone offer a direct apology.
This is mealy-mouthed and refuses to call it what it is: racism.
It doesn't even have the decency to name me, let alone offer a direct apology.
Supine journalism from The Observer, but sadly that's what we've come to expect from the mainstream media. https://t.co/QGeOqxf3jY — Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) July 21, 2025
"Supine journalism from The Observer, but sadly that's what we've come to expect from the mainstream media."
Saffron Swire is the daughter of Baron Swire, who served as a Tory MP from 2001 to 2019 and had several ministerial roles.
Since 2022, he has been a member of the House of Lords.
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Saffron has written or produced cartoons for Prospect, Tortoise, The Economist, Art UK and the New European, as well as The Spectator.
Mark Seddon, who is a former editor for the political magazine Tribune, told The National: "Cartoons are meant to challenge and to be funny but they are not really meant to offend and I think clearly this one has.
"Apart from anything else it's a rather childish scribble.
"The Observer used to host some extremely well-known cartoonists, Steve Bell being one of them, Chris Riddell being another. These were thought-provoking, deep cartoons, that were often humorous and clever, but this wasn't. The Observer has done the right thing by taking it down."
Cartoonist Neil Slorance also said: "It's a cheap shot and not very well thought through. I can't help but feel it's punching down."
Sultana resigned the Labour whip earlier this month to focus on leading a new party with Corbyn – although there has been no formal launch yet.
A poll suggested last week the new party would be level with Labour when it comes to voting intention.
The survey, conducted by pollsters Find Out Now for LBC News, found that of the 650 people polled, 15% would support the new party, matching Labour's support at 15%.