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Hadley defends Morrissey over racism claims
Friday, December 7 2007, 15:07 GMT
By Beth Hilton
Spandau Ballet singer Tony Hadley has defended Morrissey against claims that he is racist.
The former Smiths frontman was asked to clarify his views on immigration by the Love Music Hate Racism organisation after he allegedly made controversial comments during an interview with the NME.
The magazine quoted him as saying: "Other countries have held on to their basic identity, yet it seems to me that England has thrown it away." He also reportedly said that he could no longer hear a British accent in Knightsbridge.
Morrissey responded to the claims by accusing NME editor Connor McNicholas of being willing to "misreport, misquote, misinterpret, falsify, and incite the bloodthirsty".
But Hadley supported the views allegedly expressed by Morrissey in the interview, saying: "Morrissey was right in what he said about England losing its identity because of immigration. I would back that.
"Everyone jumps on the race bandwagon when you mention immigration. But this is a very small island. Immigration has brought some benefits but we need to keep it under control. This is not about race, we just need to know how many people are in this country."
Morrissey began legal action against the NME last week after it failed to apologise for the article.
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a81307/hadley-defends-morrissey-over-racism-claims.html
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