Louise Thompson slammed for ‘shameful’ jab at parents who don't potty train children

Louise Thompson has sparked backlash for slamming parents who haven’t potty trained their children, insisting they 'can't be bothered to dedicate the time’.

The former Made in Chelsea star, 36, made the controversial remarks while speaking on the podcast she shares with her fiancé, Ryan Libbey, He Said, She Said.

The couple were discussing the statistic that one in four children are sent to school before they are potty-trained.

In the podcast clip, which was shared to Instagram and later deleted, as per MailOnline, Louise said: “I think a basic human right is to teach your child before the age of four how to use the loo and how to wipe their bum."

The couple laughed as the reality TV star added: “28 per cent of kids are going to reception unable to eat and drink on their own. That's like almost a third of children…”

The Mirror reports that Ryan then said: “Alright, you've got a large number of kids in reception who've got nappies on and they can't feed or drink themselves."

Louise and Ryan have come under fire for the potty training comments (Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Louise then responded with: “Maybe it's a bit of a cop out, they're like 'oh my child's crying, and they're being a bit difficult, I can't be bothered with the hassle, so I'm just going to take the easy route.

“I think people are so distracted these days with screens that they can't be bothered to dedicate the time. I think the responsibility relies fully on the parents. I really don't think the teachers when doing their teacher training, that's something they should even have to think about."

The clip sparked widespread backlash from disappointed fans, including one X user who wrote: “Louise Thompson and Ryan should be ashamed of themselves.”

Others highlighted a variety of reasons why children might not be potty trained before age four, such as having Special Educational Needs.

A second angrily penned: “You should be ASHAMED of yourselves. How dare you post what you did on your latest podcast. As a father of a SEND child, this makes me sick.

“Laughing at children attending school in nappies. You have a responsibility to use your following to spread kindness. Do better!”

The remarks have caused widespread backlash (YouTube/He Said, She Said)

While a third wrote: “Spoken from a place of extreme privilege and never known the struggles of real families or taken the time to understand. A little bit of digging into those stats wouldn’t have gone amiss.”

However, others stuck up for the couple, with one fan pointing out: "It’s 100% the duty of a parent to send their able-bodied children to school fully potty trained and able to use a knife, fork, and spoon! It used to be a requirement."

And someone else agreed: "Absolutely spot on, and of course doesn’t include SEND children."

Louise and Ryan have since responded to the backlash, writing on Instagram: “In a previous clip we included a conversation around potty training based on recent stats and our own lived experience...

"This, however, did not include the very important reference to SEN children and families, which was an oversight, so we removed the clip to avoid further offence. It’s an important topic we are very keen to learn more about.”

Tyla has contacted a representative for Louise for comment.