British Prime Minister Richard Sunak on Friday apologised for leaving a commemoration of the Normandy landings in Normandy, France, early to appear in a television interview.
The move has sparked a backlash at home and is seen as another setback for Sunak’s Conservative party, which is slipping in opinion polls against Keir Starmer’s Labour party.
“On reflection it was a mistake not to stay longer and I have apologised for that, but I don’t think it’s right to make a political statement in the middle of the anniversary of the Normandy landings,” Sunak told reporters. “The focus should be on veterans.”
Starmer was in Normandy during the 80th anniversary commemorations of the Normandy landings, which were also attended by Britain’s King Charles and President Biden, and he was seen meeting with several world leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
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British Conservative MP Rishi Sunak walks past his campaign headquarters on October 24, 2022 in London, England. (Reuters/Hannah MacKay)
Sunak spoke at the British-led event but delegated other duties to cabinet members including Foreign Secretary David Cameron, pictured with Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The BBC reported that his decision to cut the ceremony short was made just weeks before the general election, but his campaign team ignored the idea that the British leader would abandon the commemoration of the Normandy landings to go on television and criticise the opposition.
“I can’t explain it and I won’t,” a Conservative politician, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.
She said this election could become a “Gillian Duffy moment” – a reference to the moment in 2010 when the then Prime Minister Gordon Brown apologised after being recorded calling voters “bigoted women”, seen as a turning point in the campaign which Brown lost.
UK courts are considering scrapping the requirement for barristers to wear wigs over concerns it is “culturally insensitive”.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy stand with Normandy landings veteran Alec Penstone, 98, after a British national commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings at the British Normandy Memorial in Vers-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, on June 6, 2024. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via Reuters)
Some in the British press criticised Sunak. “He should have stayed. As our prime minister he should have been there to represent the country and to say thank you to those who died,” Richard Kemp, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, said in comments to the tabloid Mirror.
Labour spokesman Jonathan Ashworth said the “disrespect” shown by Mr Sunak was “shocking”.
“I think this shows something is wrong with both his judgement and his character and people today will be asking what type of person is it that would rush away from an incident like this and give interviews to score political points to protect themselves, rather than truly paying tribute to the victims,” Ashworth told Sky News.
Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, which is running in the election, and a leading Brexit campaigner, said Mr Sunak’s actions were an “insult” to the US.
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Jason Coward, national chairman of the British Legion, and Chancellor Rishi Sunak lay a wreath during the British National Commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings at the British Normandy Memorial in Vers-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, on June 6, 2024. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via Reuters)
“He doesn’t really care about our history. Frankly, he doesn’t really care about our culture. All he cares about is staying in office,” Farage said in a video posted to social media.
“This man is unpatriotic. He doesn’t believe in this country, this people, this history and frankly even this country’s culture. If you’re a patriotic voter, you should not vote for Rishi Sunak,” Mr Farage said, adding that he was going to Normandy “personally because I wanted to go there. I care”.
Opinion polls show the Conservatives trailing Labour by around 20 points.
Earlier this month, the Conservative Party suffered historic defeats in local elections, losing around half its seats, while Labour made gains and won most major mayoral elections, including in London.
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The centre-left party has been strong in areas that voted to leave the EU in 2016 and where former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson defeated Labour in the 2019 general election.
In an interview with ITV on Thursday, Sunak warned that Labour would raise taxes by about 2,000 pounds ($2,500) per household if it won the election. Labour leaders have denied the accusation.
