Your carefully unlinked claim was from an anti-Corbynite, right winger. Emily Thornbury, who supports the old guard and has a somewhat bizarre record of hypocricy and dishonesty – what else is such a person going to say?
Jim Carroll
Mugging claims[edit]
In March 2008, Thornberry claimed that almost every child in Islington had been mugged at some stage.[21] This was denied by the Metropolitan Police as 'speculation', pointing out that out of a borough population of 180,000, only 750 people under 18 had reported being the victims of mugging in 2007.[22] However, the comments were deemed a hindrance to Labour London Mayor Ken Livingstone's re-election campaign.[23]
Personal life[edit]
Thornberry has lived in Islington since the early 1990s. In July 1991 she married fellow-barrister Sir Christopher Nugee, of Wilberforce Chambers,[62] in Tower Hamlets, and they have two sons (born December 1991 and July 1999) and a daughter (born November 1993). Nugee later became a Queen's Counsel, then a High Court Judge, when he wasknighted (whereupon she became formally styled Lady Nugee MP, a title she does not use).[63] Since 1993 they have lived on Richmond Crescent, Barnsbury, where Tony Blairalso lived until the 1997 general election, moving in on the same day as the Blairs.[64] Thornberry also part-owns properties in Guildford and South London.[54][65]
In April 2005, it emerged that Thornberry had sent her son to the partially selective Dame Alice Owen's School 14 miles (23 km) away from her home and outside her constituency. The school was formerly based in Islington and still reserves ten per cent of its places for Islington pupils.[66] The Labour Party opposes selection and Thornberry was widely criticised over the issue as a result.[67] Chris Woodhead, the former chief inspector of schools said: "I celebrate her good sense as a parent and deplore her hypocrisy as a politician. When will those who espouse the virtues of comprehensive education apply the logic of their political message to their children?" Later, Thornberry's daughter also attended the school.[68]

In a September 2016 TV interview, whilst serving as shadow foreign minister, Thornberry was asked to name the French foreign minister. Thornberry confirmed that she was unable to name the minister,[49] and accused the interviewer of sexism. Thornberry then asked to discuss the situation of North Korea, so the interviewer asked if she knew who the South Korean president was, but Thornberry did not know, saying that the interview was descending into a pub quiz. Female journalists and politicians, including Isabel Hardman and Ruth Davidson, quickly criticised Thornberry for using an allegation of sexism to cover her own poor performance.[49] Thornberry then appeared on Radio 4 to say that the interview had been sexist because the interviewer had not asked such questions of a man because the interviewer assumed that a man would know the answer.[50] However, the interviewer had previously asked a man, Alan Johnson, comparable factual questions.[51]
Thornberry was interviewed by the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS). She said: "I have actually quite a lot more experience than people might think I do. As I say I have a member of the armed forces I have a brother-in-law who's a general. I was actually made an honorary lieutenant colonel when I was doing court-martials [sic] when I was a barrister and so I have a certain amount of experience of the military there."[46] The Ministry of Defence denied this claim and Thornberry subsequently admitted she had thought she was made a colonel to have access to the officers' mess, not to appear in courts-martial.[47] During a Labour discussion about the nuclear deterrent, Thornberry admitted that she did not know what the nuclear defence rating, Defcon, is.[48]