BBC Breakfast's Charlie Stayt was left to battle it out with Reform UK's Richard Tice on Friday morning as the pair clashed over the Makerfield by-election results.
Heated Exchange on BBC One
Tensions flared briefly between Charlie Stayt and Richard Tice during their exchange on BBC One this morning. On Friday, BBC Breakfast covered Labour's Andy Burnham securing victory in the Makerfield by-election this week by 9,000 votes, with Reform UK finishing in second place.
As Stayt quizzed Tice about the significant defeat, the Reform UK Deputy Leader was pressed for his thoughts on the loss. He commented: "Obviously, one should congratulate Mr Burnham on holding a very safe Labour seat, that's been Labour for a hundred years. It's interesting, what people have voted for is what they voted for in the local elections, which is to get (Keir) Starmer out. In voting for Andy Burnham, they've reinforced that they want the Prime Minister gone."
The Reform UK MP told the BBC presenter that supporters of his party had said they were 'determined to get Starmer out', which had led them to cast their votes for Burnham to achieve that goal.
Stayt Presses for Answers
Stayt asked: "What went wrong for Reform?" as Tice replied: "As I say, this was a safe seat. Has been for a hundred years. We gave it a very good go; our vote share increased since the last general election."
While acknowledging Burnham's status as a prominent, well-recognised figure, Tice pointed out that the word 'Labour' had been absent from all his posters, asserting the party was 'incredibly unpopular'. He added: "It's Labour that's unpopular, it's the Prime Minister that's unpopular. This was a vote to remove the Prime Minister."
Stayt pressed on, reiterating that his original question concerned what had gone wrong for Reform UK in Makerfield, querying whether Tice believed nothing had gone amiss. As Tice drew attention to his remarks about Labour's seat being 'safe' in Makerfield, the two talked over each other as the BBC presenter attempted to get a direct answer to his question.
Tice Fires Back
Stayt interjected: "You've said that already, that part you've already said. Mr Tice, no. I don't want to get bogged down in things." The Reform UK MP fired back: "That's the answer to your question. There's no point re-answering. There's no point in asking the same question; I'll give you the same answer. I'll be very clear too. It's a safe Labour seat, and I've answered your question."
The BBC presenter pointed out that following a defeat, there is an opportunity for a party to reflect and explain what lessons had been learnt from the result, rather than debating whether it was a safe Labour seat. Tice, however, was unmoved, responding: "The answer is, this is a safe Labour seat, they were always expected to win with a high-profile candidate. We were always the underdogs. We fought a very hard campaign. Of course we would've loved to have won it, our reflection is, there is only one party that can beat the hard socialist currently in power, and that's Reform."
