British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak He apologized on Friday as he left early from a D-Day commemoration in Normandy, France, and went on TV for an interview.
The move sparked a sharp reaction domestically and appeared to be another setback for Sunak’s Conservative Party, which is lagging behind Keir Starmer’s Labour Party in opinion polls.
“On reflection, it was a mistake that I didn’t stay longer, and I’ve apologised for that, but I don’t think it’s right to be political in the middle of D-Day commemorations,” Sunak told reporters. “The focus rightly needs to be on the veterans.”
Starmer was in Normandy during events marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, which Britain’s King Charles and President Biden also attended. The Labour leader was seen speaking to several world leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
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British Conservative MP Rishi Sunak walks near his campaign headquarters on October 24, 2022 in London, Britain. (Reuters/Hannah Mackay)
Sunak addressed a UK-run event but delegated other responsibilities to ministers, including Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who was photographed with Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
His decision to leave the programme early was reportedly made just weeks before the general election was announced, according to the BBC. But his campaign did not consider why the UK leader would skip D-Day commemorations to go on TV and criticise the opposition.
“I cannot and will not offer an explanation,” one conservative politician told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The MP said it could become a “Gillian Duffy moment” – a reference to 2010 when Gordon Brown, then prime minister, apologised after being caught on tape calling a voter “a radical woman”, a moment seen as a turning point in the campaign he lost.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy stand with D-Day veteran Alec Penstone, 98, following the UK’s national commemoration event for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, held at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, June 6, 2024. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via Reuters)
Others attacked Sunak British Press“He should have been there. As the prime minister of our country, he should have been there to represent the nation and express his gratitude to the martyrs,” Richard Kemp, a former British army commander in Afghanistan, said in a statement to the Mirror, a tabloid newspaper.
Labour spokesman Jonathan Ashworth said the “disrespect” shown by Sunak was “shocking”.
Ashworth told Sky News: “I think it reveals some very unfair things about his judgement and his character, and I think people today will ask what sort of person thinks that running away from an event like this, and going and doing interviews to score political points, to save his own life, is more important than paying genuine respects to the fallen.”
Nigel Farage, a prominent Brexit campaigner and leader of the Reform UK party, which will stand in the election, said Sunak’s actions were an “insult” to the US.
Royal British Legion National President Jason Coward and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak lay a wreath during the UK national commemoration event for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, held at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, June 6, 2024. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via Reuters)
“He doesn’t really care about our history. To be honest, he doesn’t really care about our culture. He cares about staying in Number 10,” Farage said in a video posted on social media.
“This man is not a patriot. He doesn’t believe in the country, its people, its history and frankly, its culture. If you’re a patriotic voter, don’t vote for Rishi Sunak,” Farage said, adding that he was in Normandy “in a personal capacity because I wanted to be there. I care.”
The Conservative Party trails Labour by around 20 points. Opinion polls,
The Conservative Party suffered a historic defeat in local elections earlier this month, losing almost half its seats. The Labour Party won seats and won most of the key mayoral races, including in London.
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The centre-left party showed strength in areas that voted for Brexit in 2016 and in places where former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson won over Labour in the 2019 general election.
In an interview with ITV on Thursday, Sunak warned that if the Labor Party wins the election, it will raise taxes by about 2,000 pounds, or $2,500, per household. Labor leaders have denied this charge and
