Keir Starmer blasts Kemi Badenoch for claiming sandwiches are 'not real food'

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Keir Starmer has said sandwiches are a "great British institution" after Kemi Badenoch claimed they are not "real food".

The Prime Minister's spokesperson said he was “surprised” to learn that the Tory leader instead occasionally has a steak brought in for lunch after she spoke about her eating habits in an interview.

It comes after Badenoch said she is "not a sandwich person" and that "lunch is for wimps". Speaking to the Spectator magazine, Badenoch had claimed that sandwiches were “what you have for breakfast” and that she “will not touch bread if it’s moist”.

Asked whether the Prime Minister shared her views, Number 10 defended the sandwich as a “great British institution”. According to the British Sandwich Association, sandwiches bring in £8 billion a year to the UK economy.

Starmer's official spokesman said he is “quite happy with a sandwich lunch” and is partial to a “tuna sandwich and occasionally a cheese toastie”.

“I think he was surprised to hear that the leader of the Opposition has a steak brought in for lunch,” the spokesman added.

In an interview published on Thursday, the Tory leader had said: “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 added: “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 previously described himself as a “big sandwich person”, telling reporters during the 2024 election campaign that a “club sandwich” was one of his favourites.

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