Rod Liddle: UK Correspondent on the UK general election, the fallout of Rishi Sunak leaving the D-Day commemorations

Rishi Sunak is struggling to recover after his blunder during the D-Day commemorations. 

The Prime Minister left the commemorations early, deciding to return home to continue his election campaign instead of joining other world leaders to pay their respects. 

He’s apologised for the decision, saying that “on reflection, that was a mistake and I apologise.” 

UK Correspondent Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking that for a period of time over Saturday morning into Sunday afternoon, it looked like he might be standing down. 

He said that it was a terrible misjudgement, and it’s very difficult to see how he can recover from the blunder.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Right campaign time in the UK, Rod little morning.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Mate, Good morning to you mate since.

Speaker 1 (00:04):
We last talk. And I'll get your explanation on this,
because no one else can seemingly explain it. Rishi's in
one country for a reasonably important event until he decides
to scarper off early and what brain explosion can lead
to something that disastrous.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
I think he's for it. I think he's not a politician.
I think he was caught between wondering whether he should
do the right thing or whether he should do what
he was being advised by his team, and he ended
up coming home and for a period, Mike, I've got
to say, over Saturday morning into Sunday afternoon, it looked

(00:44):
very much as if he might be standing down. It
was a terrible, terrible misjudgment. It's still a terrible misjudgment.
It still hangs over him and it's very difficult to
see how it can recover from it.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
No exactly the campaign itself. I'm seeing a lot of
money being tossed about the place, or at least promise
to be tossed about. Do people pay a great deal
attention to that at the moment and add the numbers
up to see whether they're real or they just it's
a barrage of promises.

Speaker 2 (01:12):
What do you think, mate, I don't think they take
very much notice of it at all. The latest stuff
we've got that the touring manifesto will include tax cuts,
but they've been saying that for so long, and then
last time they tried tax cuts under this trust it
crashed the economy labor meanwhile, is the Libdems rather are
saying they're going to pour eight billion pounds into the

(01:33):
advocating mouth of the NHS. I don't think that will
cut much eyes either. So no, I don't think the
promises of spending really cut through to the electorate at all.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
What about Farage and has comment about Rishi This goes
back to d Day But he doesn't understand our culture.
Is this dog whistle? And if it is, is it working.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
A little bit of dog whistle? We could give him
the benefit of the doubt and suggest that he was
genuinely referring to class. But I have never previously heard Nigel,
who I know very well, attack people on account of
their class. I've never heard that I have heard him

(02:17):
attack people on the basis of their excuse me, of
their race. So I think that's what was happening there.
That being said, I think it will have fallen on
the years of a generally receptive public. You know, whether
they get a nuance of it or not, it's another matter.

(02:39):
But clearly Richie somehow has a closs here when it
comes to what you ought to do in a certain situation.
And Ferras was probably right to call it out the
way he called it out. I thought a little bit crass.

Speaker 1 (02:53):
Yeah, I noticed that Richie was in a pub and
he was busy yet again saying now I'm a leader
and not going to plan and we're going to do
all that sort of. Have we ruled out a resignation
slash coup? Has it got so? Because I've seen some
of the polls since we last talked, and even if
you even if you give them just a shred of credence,
I mean, it looks horrific for the Tories. Have we
ruled that for the toy exactly? Have we ruled out

(03:16):
a coup or a rolling or a resignation or something.

Speaker 2 (03:19):
I don't think we should entirely rule out a coup.
I think we should kind of ninety seven percent ruled
it out. It's terribly late in the day, and I
don't know. I think I think the public knows that
they've had too many Conservative Party leaders who they haven't
elected themselves, you know, So I think that's in there

(03:41):
as well. I think Suela Bravaman talking up Nigel Farage.
I think there are people tilting of this that Richude
should go now. But I don't think it's feasible. We've
got three and a half, three and a half weeks
to go before the poll. It's just not going to happen.

Speaker 1 (04:00):
No, do you believe many of the part I mean
one of them hit them down somewhere between forty and
sixty something seats. I mean, you know, just just a
ridiculous swing.

Speaker 2 (04:10):
Well, the problem is we have a first pass of
post system, which is why, sadly, Mike I am probably
not going to be the next Foreign secretary. We have
a first part of post system which does throw up
terribly weird results of times. So you remember back in
where you probably may not remember, back in nineteen eighty

(04:31):
three and eighty seven, you know, the Social Democratic Party,
Liberal Democratic Party Alliance got someone like twenty seven percent
of the vote, only one percent below labor, but only
got about eight for eight seats, whereas the Labor Party
got two hundred. You know, we have a very bizarre
electoral system which really doesn't work. I think it's not

(04:55):
impossible that the Tories could face a wipeout. The way
that going, the way this campaign is being run, and
the advent of Nigel Ferras, which has changed everything, really
does suggest that they are under the kosh in a
really big way, a way which I have never envisaged.
When the poll was called.

Speaker 1 (05:16):
Catch you up on Thursday, might appreciate it rod a
little out of Britain for you. This morning they produced
a map also the police the big crime thing if
you're going to Europe for summer. Read another piece and
seeing what I think it was seeing in yesterday it said,
with hotel prices and the weather and the falling dollar,
the dollar they referred to as the American good luck
in Europe this summer. Anyway, the police in London have

(05:37):
published a map of where you're most likely to get
your phone nicked and we know all about it. At
our house. Son who's in that part of the world.
The other day was coming out of the place and
guy comes past and a bite gone and there's fifty
two thousand. So far this year, fifty two thousand phones
have been nited in the capital city of Westminster is
where you don't want to be, and of course that's

(05:58):
where you will be if you're a tourist, but because
that's you know, the houses of Parliament and all the
flash neighborhoods and all the shops and stuff like that.
Eighteen eight hundred and sixty three reported incidents alone in
the city of Westminster, up forty seven percent on last year.
Camden not good, second, Southern Hackney, Newham, Lambeth, Islington not good,

(06:19):
not good, not good, not good, not good. So if
you've got a phone and you're going on holiday to London,
be careful.

Speaker 2 (06:26):
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