Rishi Sunak speaks of hurt and anger at daughters hearing racial slur from Reform activists

Rishi Sunak has spoken of his hurt and anger at his daughters having to hear Reform activists using a racial slur about him.

The prime minister said he hated repeating the insult but said as a father it was important to challenge “corrosive and divisive behaviour”.

He was responding after supporters of Nigel Farage’s party were recorded making racist comments, including about the Tory leader who is of Indian descent.

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Mr Sunak: “My two daughters have to see and hear Reform people who campaign for Nigel Farage calling me an effing ‘P***’.

“It hurts and it makes me angry and I think he has some questions to answer.

“And I don’t repeat those words lightly.

“I do so deliberately because this is too important not to call out clearly for what it is.”

Speaking on an election campaign visit to a school in Teesside, he added: “And as prime minister, but more importantly as a father of two young girls, it’s my duty to call out this corrosive and divisive behaviour.”

Mr Sunak said he repeated the racial insult because it was important to challenge it.

He went on: “I hate having to do it, I chose my words deliberately, I hate having to repeat them, absolutely hate it.

“But I also think it’s important to call this out for what it is and be clear about what it is.”

The footage, captured by an undercover Channel 4 reporter in Clacton where Mr Farage is a candidate, showed Reform campaigner Andrew Parker making the discriminatory remark about Mr Sunak and suggesting migrants should be used as “target practice”.

He also described Islam as a “disgusting cult”.

‘I’ve never seen him so angry’

I’ve spent much of the last five weeks with the prime minister, dozens of visits, dozens of questions but today I’ve never seen him so angry, writes Sky News political correspondent Darren McCaffrey.

The broadcast last night of a Reform canvasser making a targeted racist slur against the Tory leader has left Rishi Sunak not just angry but he says hurt too.

When asked why he had deliberately decided to repeat the slur itself in an interview, he said it’s not something he wanted to do.

“I hate it, I hate having to do it, I choose my words deliberately, I hate it, but I have to call it out for what it is,” he said.

On a personal level, this clearly matters to the prime minister and his desire to protect his family.

He has mentioned his daughters having to hear racism like this several times.

Politically the Conservatives are hoping that this will also make voters think twice about Reform and about Nigel Farage.

When I asked Rishi Sunak if he would now describe Reform as a racist party he wouldn’t go that far, but suggested Mr Farage “has questions to answer”.

Another canvasser described the Pride flag as “degenerate” and suggested members of the LGBT community were paedophiles.

Mr Farage has sought to distance himself from the inflammatory comments, saying he was “dismayed” by the “appalling sentiments” expressed.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he was “shocked” by the “clearly racist” footage and that the Reform UK leader faces a “test of leadership”.

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Mr Farage has used reports Mr Parker was a part-time actor to suggest the incriminating film was a “total set-up”.

Appearing on ITV’s Loose Women, he said: “It was an act right from the very start.”

Mr Farage added: “I have to tell you, this whole thing was a complete and total set-up, I have no doubt about that.”

Asked whether he thought Mr Parker had been paid, he said: “I don’t know whether he was paid or not.”

He added: “I’m saying it’s possible, I don’t know. Something is wrong here.”

But Mr Parker told Sky News his volunteering for Reform was separate from his acting job, adding that he had been “goaded” into making the comments caught on camera.

He said: “There’s lots of old people like me who are sick to death of this woke agenda… but on that particular day, I was set up and set up good and proper.

“It’s proper taught me a lesson – I was a total fool.”

He added: “I still support Nigel Farage, I think Nigel Farage is a brilliant guy.

“I think Nigel Farage is the only person who tells the truth.”

Mr Sunak also hit out at Mr Farage’s previous praise of Andrew Tate as an “important voice” for men.

The online influencer has faced charges of human trafficking, rape, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.

The prime minister said: “Andrew Tate isn’t an important voice for men. He’s a vile misogynist. And our politics and country is better than that.”

The other candidates in Clacton are:

Matthew Bensilum, Liberal Democrat

Craig Jamieson, Climate Party

Tony Mack, independent

Natasha Oben, Green Party

Tasos Papanastasiou, Heritage Party