Keir Starmer hits back at Kemi Badenoch's claim sandwiches 'not real food'
by Nina Lloyd PA Political Correspondent · ChronicleLiveDowning Street has defended the humble sandwich as a "great British institution", following comments from Kemi Badenoch dismissing the dish as not "real food". The Prime Minister was reportedly "surprised" to learn that his opposite number, the Conservative Party leader, occasionally opts for a steak lunch.
In an interview with the Spectator magazine, Ms Badenoch claimed sandwiches were more suited to breakfast and expressed her aversion to moist bread. When asked if the Prime Minister shared her views, Number 10 championed the sandwich, highlighting its £8 billion annual contribution to the UK economy.
Sir Keir’s official spokesman revealed the Labour leader is "quite happy with a sandwich lunch", favouring tuna sandwiches and cheese toasties.
The spokesman added: "I think he was surprised to hear that the leader of the Opposition has a steak brought in for lunch."
In the same interview, the Tory leader stated: "What’s a lunch break? Lunch is for wimps. I have food brought in and I work and eat at the same time. There’s no time... Sometimes I will get a steak... I’m not a sandwich person."
She concluded: "I don’t think sandwiches are a real food, it’s what you have for breakfast. I will not touch bread if it’s moist."
Former Conservative prime minister Rishi Sunak has come out as a self-proclaimed "big sandwich person" with the "club sandwich" being named among his top picks during his 2024 election campaign trail. Ms Badenoch didn't miss a beat to hit back at the Prime Minister’s reaction to her quip on social media, stating: "The PM has time to respond to my jokes about lunch... but no time for the farmers who produce our food."
She also accused him of apathy towards critical questions, saying: "He refused to answer questions because he doesn’t care. It’s an ideological attack on farmers and will destroy lives."
"The PM has time to respond to my jokes about lunch... but no time for the farmers who produce our food.
"He refused to answer questions because he doesn’t care. It’s an ideological attack on farmers and will destroy lives.
"The Conservatives will reverse his cruel family farm tax."
Join our WhatsApp communities
ChronicleLive is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join our communities.
We have a number of communities to join, so you can choose which one you want to be part of and we'll send you the latest news direct to your phone. You could even join them all!
To join you need to have WhatsApp on your device. All you need to do is choose which community you want to join, click on the link and press 'join community'.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the ChronicleLive team.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.
If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
If you’re curious, you can read our privacy notice.
Join the ChronicleLive Breaking News and Top Stories community
Join our Court & Crime community
Join the Things to do in Newcastle and the North East community
Join our Northumberland community
Join our County Durham community
Join our Great North Run community