Conservative British MP Amber Rudd has said she is "mortified" and apologised after referring to opposition MP Diane Abbott as "a coloured woman" during a radio interview.
The statement comes after Ms Abbott, the first black female MP to elected to the British House of Commons, criticised the language, calling it an "out-dated, offensive and revealing choice of words".
Ms Rudd made the statement during an interview about the online abuse endured by MPs on BBC Radio 2.
"It definitely is worse if you're a woman, and it's worst of all if you're a coloured woman. I know Diane Abbott gets a huge amount of abuse," she said.
Following the backlash, Ms Rudd Tweeted that she was "mortified at my clumsy language", but that "no one should suffer abuse because of their race or gender."
Labour MP Danielle Rowley also hit back at the phrase, claiming Ms Rudd undermined "an important point about online abuse".
"She clearly gets her language from the same bygone era as her abhorrent welfare policies," she wrote on Twitter.
