The former defence secretary and ex-Royal Naval reservist accepts Rishi Sunak‘s apology, but rival politicians continue their attacks on the PM’s actions.
The prime minister was “completely wrong” to leave D-Day commemorations early, a senior cabinet member has said.
Rishi Sunak apologised on Friday after it was revealed he skipped an international event the day before on Omaha Beach in France – attended by leaders of the US, France and Germany – to come back to the UK for a TV interview.
But as well as the political condemnation, he also faced criticism from veterans. “He’s letting this country down,” 98-year-old Ken. “He’s letting this country down.” His tax will increase by £2,000.
Ms Mordaunt previously accepted her boss should have stayed at the D-Day conference but praised him for apologising “not just to veterans, but on behalf of all of us”.
The former Royal Navy reservist added: “I was Defence Minister too. And my wish this weekend is that all veterans feel fully cherished.”
“I want to convince them tonight of some of the things that matter to them, that matter to their legacy, and I couldn’t do that if I wasn’t honest with you on this issue.”
But the decision drew a flurry of attacks from rivals after she called for the row not to become a “political football”. The Prime Minister.
Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, said: “A Prime Minister who puts his political career before public service is no Prime Minister. A Prime Minister who puts his political career before Normandy veterans is no Prime Minister.
“It is our duty to do our national service and vote the Conservative party out.”
Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Reform Party, said it was an “utter disgrace” by an “unpatriotic” Prime Minister. The minister added: “If his instincts were the same as those of the British people he would never have considered for a moment not taking part in this great international celebration and it shows how out of touch he is with the people of this country.”
Plaid Cymru leader Lun ap Iorworth said: “This is certainly not a day when the Prime Minister has to make a decision…” Mr Farage said fighting for his political future should be his priority, but also criticised the use of the commemoration as a “photo-op”. Best friend shot in the head while wading through water, falls from a tank
She called Mr Sunak’s decision a “political disgrace”, adding: “If I’d been there yesterday and the Prime Minister had walked away from him, I would have found it just as utterly unacceptable as I do now.” On immigration and tax
Labour’s Angela Lyner and Mr Mordaunt argued throughout, with a particularly tense exchange over the Conservatives’ much maligned claim that Labour would cut taxes and then raise them by £2,000 in the next parliament.
Mr Sunak used the figure repeatedly when he debated Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer on Tuesday, but the following day a senior Treasury official said the figure “should not be presented as having been produced by the civil service” and multiple economic experts disputed the numbers.
However, Ms Mordaunt made the claim again in a terse row with Ms Rayner, also claiming Labour would “bring in 12 new taxes”.
Labour’s deputy leader said it was “a lie”, attacking the government for “raising taxes to a record level” during their time in office.
But the sniping gave the others on stage a chance to mock the pair, with co-leader of the Green Party, Carla Denyer, saying: “Well, that was terribly dignified, wasn’t it?”