Robert Jenrick has hit back after his hot mic blunder on Good Morning Britain. Reform UK's Treasury spokesman was heard branding his interview a "waste of time" while he was still on air.
Mr Jenrick had clashed with presenters Ed Balls, a former Labour cabinet minister, and Susanna Reid over a £5million gift Nigel Farage received from a cryptocurrency billionaire.
Jenrick's response on X
Taking to X afterwards, the Reform politician said: "Yes, we’ve got Ed’s useless mates back in government, people are struggling, and he can’t be bothered to ask how Reform would do things differently."
"For the record: Reform will cut your energy bills by £200 by cutting VAT *and* by removing green levies."
The hot mic moment
During the combative interview, Balls asked: "You were reportedly warned a number of times that this was a breach of electoral law, hence this police investigation. What is the status of that police investigation? Are you co-operating? What do you think the outcome will be, and when will you know that stain on your reputation has been lifted?"
Mr Jenrick replied: "There's no stain on my reputation, Ed. This is a complete smear that's been put about by the Tory party."
As the interview wrapped up, Balls said: "Robert Jenrick, that is very clear, thank you very much indeed for joining us this morning." Reid continued: "Still to come on Good Morning Britain. If a young person in your family is about to head off travelling..."
At that point, Mr Jenrick, who was no longer on the screen, could be heard saying: "Well, that was a waste of time."
Balls said: "I think it wasn't a waste of time. I think Robert Jenrick gave us very clear answers on the police investigation. It's not a waste of time for him to make clear that he believes there's no police investigation. So, it was good he came on the programme."
