Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom, has characterized Tory leader Kemi Badenoch as a “self-appointed savior of Western civilization.”
The UK leader also denied Badenoch’s claim that he had accepted her advice to slash the aid budget.
Badenoch noted that Starmer followed her proposal to lower aid expenditure while investigating anomalies in the government’s defense budget statistics.
She said, “Over the weekend, I suggested to the prime minister that he cut the aid budget, and I am pleased that he accepted my advice. It’s the fastest response I’ve ever had from the prime minister.
“However, he announced £13.4 billion of additional defense spending yesterday. This morning, his defense secretary said the uplift is only £6bn. Which is the correct figure?”
During a plenary session on Wednesday, Starmer bluntly denied being persuaded by Badenoch’s suggestion and sarcastically disregarded her assertion.
“I’m going to have to let the leader of the opposition down gently. She didn’t feature in my thinking at all. I was so busy over the weekend I didn’t even see her proposal,” he remarked.
United Kingdom Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has described Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch, as a “self-appointed saviour of Western civilisation.”
The UK leader also dismissed Badenoch’s assertion that he had followed her advice on cutting the aid budget.
Badenoch had stated that Starmer had acted on her recommendation to reduce aid spending while questioning inconsistencies in the government’s defense budget figures.
She said, “Over the weekend, I suggested to the prime minister that he cut the aid budget, and I am pleased that he accepted my advice. It’s the fastest response I’ve ever had from the prime minister.
“However, he announced £13.4 billion of additional defense spending yesterday. This morning, his defense secretary said the uplift is only £6bn. Which is the correct figure?”
Reacting during a plenary session on Wednesday, Starmer flatly denied being influenced by Badenoch’s suggestion and dismissed her claim with sarcasm.
“I’m going to have to let the leader of the opposition down gently. She didn’t feature in my thinking at all. I was so busy over the weekend I didn’t even see her proposal,” he remarked.
Speaking further, Starmer stated, “She’s appointed herself, I think, the savior of Western civilization. It’s a desperate search for relevance. If you take the numbers for this financial year and then the numbers for financial year 27/28, that’s a £13.4bn increase—the largest sustained increase in defense spending since the Cold War.”
His remarks drew laughter from MPs on the House floor, with Badenoch herself seen smiling at the exchange.
