David Lammy says moment for taking the knee has 'probably passed' after Lionesses said they will no longer use anti-racism gesture before matches
The Foreign Secretary said kneeling had been adopted at a 'moment in time' after the murder of George Floyd in the US.
He also insisted he had not seen people making the gesture for 'some years' - even though it routinely happens at football games.
The England women's team has announced they will not take the knee before kick-off after one of their stars Jess Carter was subjected to racist abuse during the Euros tournament.
In a statement, the Lionesses said 'another way' needed to be found to tackle racism and football must look at 'what more can be done'.
Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner were among the senior politicians pictured taking the knee at the height of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020.
However, the roots of the protest go back much further, including Colin Kaepernick using it in the NFL in 2016.
Asked on Times Radio this morning about the gesture, Mr Lammy said: 'I think that was a moment in time after the murder of George Floyd.
'I think that moment has probably passed. I haven't seen actually for some years people using that particular gesture.'
The Tottenham MP - a Spurs fan - stressed that football had come a long way since the 1970s but highlighted that problems persist.
"I think that football has done a lot, since I started going to watch matches with my father at Spurs back in the 1970s, to bear down on racism across the sport,' he said.
'But clearly there is more to do and it's distressing and very sad that these young players are receiving racism in the way that they are.
'I think the overwhelming majority of people that go and watch is now very much a family game go with a pure heart and are certainly not going to dish out abuse on women playing football.
'It's for players and communities to show their concern about supporting a space that is free from abuse in the way that they think best appropriate."
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