Welsh MP calls Nigel Farage's comments 'unforgivable' as she opens up on grief

A Welsh MP has spoken out about the death of her young son following the murder of 18-year-old Henry Nowak. Carolyn Harris spoke on Friday's Matt Allright show on Channel 5 about the heartbreak of losing her own son 37 years ago to the day. Ms Harros' son Martin was eight years old when he was killed in a car accident in Swansea in 1989 – an incident that was used by local road traffic safety campaigners. The Labour MP for Neath and Swansea East talked of how the pain she felt over the recent murder of Henry Nowak – a teenager who was murdered in Southampton by Vickrum Digwa who stabbed him with an eight-inch blade. After Digwa was convicted of murder a video was released showing the moment Mr Nowak was handcuffed by police before being left for dead after he was stabbed. Hundreds of people have since protested after the shocking footage was shared with protesters shouting the last words of Mr Nowak: “I can’t breathe”. Speaking with guest host Isabel Webster Ms Harris talked of how difficult she found this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions where Keir Starmer talked about the tragic death of Mr Nowak. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here . She said: "I did find PMQs very painful because Keir’s words reflected how I was feeling. It goes back to when I lost my son in a road accident. "A couple of months after I lost my son there was a local campaign to actually use the road that my son was killed on as an alternative route when a main road was being resurfaced. "Local campaigners decided to use my son as the sort of the pin-up boy, if you like, of their campaign, which meant I was seeing his face on the front of the paper constantly and I asked them not to and they didn't. "So I had to go to the paper and say: ‘Please can you stop using my son?’ because despite the fact they did have a very good reason for not wanting that bus to go along the main road but it was my grief and it was my desire that my son was not used in that kind of context." Mr Starmer has accused Nigel Farage of exploiting the death of Henry Nowak to create "grievance and division" after the Clacton MP and Reform UK leader claimed the incident was the result of "two-tier policing" because of anti-racism guidance issued by police bosses. Ms Harris said Mr Farage had "exploited" the Nowak's family's grief. She said: "What Nigel Farage has done with Henry Nowak's family is completely unforgivable. They've exploited a family's personal grief. They have taken away that privacy that family so desperately needed and need now. "It is unforgivable. And, you know, God be with them because they are going through the most painful time in their life. For someone to exploit that for political gain is absolutely appalling." She also revealed Mr Starmer and his wife had been in touch with her on the anniversary of her son’s death on June 5. She said: "Keir is a very close friend of mine and Keir and his wife have both been in contact with me about my grief today. "We are very close family friends and there's no way he would use that situation (Henry Nowak’s death) for politicking. "He is not that kind of person. He’s a father and he feels that pain on a personal level and he would not exploit it." Get daily breaking news updates on your phone by joining our WhatsApp community here . We occasionally treat members to special offers, promotions and ads from us and our partners. See our Privacy Notice .