Intervening in a London Assembly questions and answers session as there was some suggestion in the chamber that the English Defence League street protest organisation founded ‐ but now abandoned ‐ by Tommy Robinson might be a terrorist outfit, Mr Whitte said: "Whether you agreee with them or not, and I don’t, if you start talking about people like the EDL in terms of terrorism, I think you’re on to a real problem... You’ve got to be careful when you start saying people are terrorists."
Mr Whittle used this intervention as a launchpad to question the use of terminology by the establishment and, in particular, Commissioner Dick herself, asking: "You’re talking about ’right-wing’ groups... ’extreme right-wing’, you have no problem saying that ‐ but then you go on to say ’so-called Islamist-inspired’. Why are you mealy-mouthed?"