Piers Morgan signs new deal to keep presenting Good Morning Britain despite overwhelming public push to have him sacked
Piers Morgan, former Good Morning Britain presenter. (HGL/GC Images)
The trans community has been handed an early lump of coal for Christmas with the news that Piers Morgan will continue in his Good Morning Britain post for another two years.
Morgan announced this morning that after “weeks of frenzied global, possibly galactic speculation”, he was “delighted” to have signed a two-year deal to front Good Morning Britain.
This comes in spite of a petition to remove Morgan from the breakfast show which was signed by more than 34,000 people.
As part of the deal, Morgan will also make two new series of his Life Stories format.
“What could be a better Christmas present for the nation?” he asked.
While many fans of Piers Morgan were delighted by the news, there were also those who took the opportunity to troll…
Practically anything.
— Steve Nicholls (@badorienteer) December 16, 2019
They usually pass within two years, with a lot of pain pic.twitter.com/01vm10ygV2
— Al (@Surfer017) December 16, 2019
Dog poo on the shoe?! https://t.co/MKinZ63C4h
— Hoppo62 (@hoppo1962) December 16, 2019
… including his long-suffering co-anchor Susanna Reid.
Can’t think of a better Christmas present *stares at list* https://t.co/7Tqh1oSqzi
— Susanna Reid (@susannareid100) December 16, 2019
We’d also imagine that for the trans, non-binary and gender non-confirming community, a better Christmas present would be an end to the hateful anti-trans rhetoric which has become so commonplace.
Even better would be an end to epidemic of hate crimes that has only grown worse over the past few years.
In 2018/19, there were more than 2,300 anti-trans hate crimes recorded, a 37 per cent rise on the previous year.
The National Police Chief’s Council said that while improved reporting is partially responsible for the overall rise in hate crime figures, “these statistics also represent real rises in hate crime, and we are particularly concerned about the sharp increases in LGB and transgender abuse.”
Assistant chief constable Mark Hamilton said: “We also recognise there are real divisions in our society at this time, and there is a responsibility on us all to think carefully and be temperate in how we communicate with each other to avoid escalating tensions or emboldening others.”
Liam Austen, who started the petition calling for Morgan’s removal, has previously called on ITV to make Good Morning Britain “an effective platform to educate the masses on these issues”.
“In keeping Piers Morgan as the programme’s main draw, however, ITV are actively choosing to promote an insidious agenda against transgender people (and minorities in general), as through his choice of language he regularly berates and mocks those who do not identify in a way he is willing to comprehend,” he added.
Austen pointed to an exchange in which Morgan said he identified as a “two-spirit penguin”. This claim drew almost 1,000 Ofcom complaints, but the ombudsman ruled that Morgan’s remarks “did not raise issues warranting investigation”.
