Fiona Bruce to step back from Refuge after Stanley Johnson remarks on Question Time

BBC Question Time presenter Fiona Bruce says she will step back from her role as an ambassador for the charity Refuge, following a comment she made on air about Stanley Johnson.

Bruce has been accused of trivialising domestic violence during a discussion about Johnson on last week's show.

In a statement, Bruce confirmed that she will be leaving her role "with real sadness".

She added that her words has been "mischaracterised" in a "media storm".

The presenter faced a backlash after stepping in when Johnson was described as a "wife-beater" on last week's Question Time.

Bruce interjected, telling viewers: "Just so everyone knows what this is referring to, Stanley Johnson's wife spoke to a journalist, Tom Bower, and she said that Stanley Johnson had broken her nose and that she'd ended up in hospital as a result.

"Stanley Johnson has not commented publicly on that. Friends of his have said it did happen but it was a one-off."

Her comments were criticised by the charity Women's Aid, who called them "unnecessary and irresponsible".

"We know at Women's Aid that domestic abuse is rarely, if ever, a 'one-off', with the vast majority of abuse being a pattern of behaviour," said chief executive Farah Nazeer.

"Even if abuse is an isolated event, it would have still been domestic abuse, and this should never be minimised."

Announcing her decision on Monday, Bruce said: "Last week on Question Time, I was required to legally contextualise a question about Stanley Johnson.

"Those words have been taken as an expression of my own opinions which they are absolutely not, and as a minimising of domestic abuse, which I would never do.

"I have been a passionate advocate and campaigner for all survivors of domestic abuse, and have used my privileged position as a woman in the public eye to bring this issue to the fore, notably in my work for over 25 years with Refuge," she continued.

"But following the events of last week, I have faced a social media storm, much of which mischaracterised what I said and took the form of personal abuse directed at me.

"The only people that matter in all this are the survivors, they are my priority. The last thing in the world that I would want is that this issue in any way creates a distraction from Refuge's critical work on their behalf, and therefore I think the right thing to do is to step back from my role with Refuge.

"This has been a hard decision for me as I feel so strongly about promoting their work and advancing awareness of this issue. I will continue to be an active supporter, albeit from the sidelines for now."