Piers Morgan, as we know, is a controversial figure. That’s what he has built his career out of and, though he divides opinion, he certainly gets people talking. This time around, the TalkTV broadcaster has met his match in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. During a one-hour interview, the PM unwittingly made blunder over blunder until the whole thing became a burning heap of mistakes.
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The last 24 hours have been particularly explosive for Piers too, given that his comments about King Charles’ cancer diagnosis also sparked a whole wave of criticism. However, let’s stick to the man in question: here are all the worst bits of Rishi Sunak’s ‘deeply distasteful’ interview.
Rishi Sunak the gambling man
The main point that has got people talking is the bet. Sunak has been accused of taking British politics to a ‘new low’ after he agreed to bet Piers £1,000 in front of an audience of millions. Why on Earth would he do that? Good question. Well, it’s because Piers bruised his ego by bringing up the interminable Rwanda debate.
The PM insisted that asylum seekers will be put on a plane to Kigali before the general election expected in Autumn. When Piers suggested they lay a casual £1k down on the matter, Sunak rose to the challenge and shook his hand. This, obviously, has gone down like a lead balloon.
Green MP Caroline Lucas told The Independent that this moment really was a new low:
Words fail me that the prime minister and Piers Morgan can be so callous about the awful Rwanda policy that they place a bet on it.
Sunak has since spoken out in response to the onslaught of criticism, boyishly explaining that he was ‘taken by surprise’ when Piers suggested the bet. He reassured the British public on BBC Radio 5 Live that he is ‘not a betting person’. However, he also said that this move served to underline his ‘absolute commitment’ to the policy. Meanwhile, Labour has stated that it just shows how ‘totally out of touch with working people’ Sunak truly is.
Sunak attacked Keir Starmer
Another key moment involved Sunak’s comments about Labour leader Keir Starmer. Before Starmer entered the world of politics he worked as a lawyer, and Sunak slammed him for having advised the now-banned Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir in a dispute with the German government:
There he was, he was their lawyer when they were trying to resist this. We have just proscribed them because we think that is what they are. And these things speak to people’s values, right?
When asked whether he would say Starmer was a ‘terrorist sympathiser’, the PM gave a stinging response:
I would say let the facts speak for themselves, right?
Going by this very logic, the PM has certainly not come out of this interview in a good light. Let’s review the facts: Sunak placed a bet on the removal of desperate asylum seekers and accused his political opponent of ‘representing’ terrorists. It’s not been a good start to the week for the UK’s Prime Minister and, to make matters worse, he’s probably been dealing with all this stress on an empty stomach.
Read more:
⋙ Rishi Sunak: Here's the one thing he often wears and will desperately need amid Rwanda row
⋙ Rishi Sunak has been in office for one year: Here's the salary he earns as Prime Minister
⋙ King Charles' cancer diagnosis prompts Prince Harry to return to the UK
Sources used:
BBC: Rishi Sunak says he was taken by surprise on £1,000 Rwanda bet
TalkTV: Piers Morgan presses Rishi Sunak on 'Jihadi GP' Abdul Wahid and whether Sir Keir Starmer is a 'terrorist sympathiser'
Independent: Rishi Sunak accused of ‘new low’ after betting £1,000 on Rwanda deportation flights
