Prime Minister Andy Burnham was branded "Burnham the bottler" by GB News presenter Lizzie Cundy in a furious live TV rant, as she accused him of "avoiding the big issues" after he ruled out a snap election.
Burnham declared he would not consider calling an election until 2029, sparking backlash from Cundy, who criticised his focus on what she called "small political issues."
'Why aren't you calling for that snap election?'
Speaking on GB News, Cundy said: "Well, despite being parachuted in with no mandate, yes, the man with those big glasses and the black t-shirt is doing all right in the polls, 23%. So I say, Andy, why aren't you calling for that snap election? Well, I'll tell you why.
"Because Andy likes to focus on the small political issues and avoid any big issues. I mean, look what's going on in this great country of ours at the moment. Inflation, soaring, and immigration crisis. I mean, since Monday, 1,200 migrants have crossed over to us. It's a national emergency. But what does Andy want to talk about? Oh, yes, Andy wants to talk about bus fares."
'Time to put those big boy pants on'
Cundy continued: "He wants to talk about having an alcoholic beverage in the football stand. Well, I'm sorry, Andy. It's time to put those big boy pants on.
"It really is. I'm afraid you are a tad of Robin Hood with Dick Turpin. The only thing with you, Andy, is that you tax the rich and you tax the poor, and you never stand and deliver.
"My feeling is there's a lot of cluck, cluck, cluck coming from number 10. I think, Andy Burnham, you're a chicken."
Burnham dismisses early election speculation
Burnham quickly shot down the idea of holding a General Election after polls indicated it would be a hung parliament, as he told ITV: "Well, yes, that's when the next election will be. All of this speculation on an early election – I can knock that dead.
"You know, people want me, new in office, to be getting on with the job of delivering on the things that we've discussed, rather than putting self-serving politics before that, which was what I would be doing if I call an election. I'm not going to do that."
