Rishi ‘Biggles’ Sunak was last night blasted by a D-Day veteran for “letting his country down” by leaving Normandy early so he could campaign for the election.
World War two veteran Ken Hay, 98, who was captured as a prisoner of war weeks after D-Day, described the blundering PM’s move as “just electioneering”.
Ken’s words were echoed around the country as Biggles was forced into making a blundering apology for his clanger.
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The PM attended the UK national D-Day event at Portsmouth on Wednesday and then the British ceremony in Normandy on Thursday to mark the anniversary of the Allied landings.
(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
But he left France early before world leaders including US President Joe Biden gathered for the main international commemoration on Omaha Beach on Thursday afternoon.
It later emerged Biggles had given a broadcast interview to ITV on his return to Britain.
After outrage erupted over Sunak’s early exit, he made his first apology in a social media post on Friday morning – saying it was a “mistake not to stay in France longer”.
He issued a second grovelling “sorry” while back on the campaign trail yesterday.
Biggles was mocked on social media as it included a stop at a school in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire on a street called Veterans Way.
As he battles to turn around his rapidly fading chance at winning the general election, Sunak also told broadcasters about his D-Day howler: “On reflection, that was a mistake, and I apologise.”
(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
He insisted he cares “deeply” about the armed forces and veterans and begged for his latest blunder not to be “politicised”.
Number 10 and the Conservatives had not replied to the Daily Star at the time of going to print about rumours Biggles had left Normandy by private jet or helicopter to make his ITV interview.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer stayed on in France after Sunak’s exit and mingled with 25 heads of state including Ukraine ’s heroic leader Volodymyr Zelensky.
The wannabe PM stuck the boot into Sunak by stating he “will have to answer for his own actions” over leaving Normandy ahead of the D-Day event.
Starmer added: “For me there was nowhere else I was going to be,” and said he was “surprised” by Sunak’s move given the gravity of the event.
The Tories’ veterans minister Johnny Mercer branded the PM’s decision to leave the D-Day anniversary events early as a “significant mistake” and said: “I get the outrage.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Ken Hay served in the 4th Infantry Dorset Regiment, was captured a few weeks after landing on Juno beach, and was forced on a 1,000-mile death march for three months through snow and ice.
He said of Biggles: “I don’t have a great regard for politicians. He’s electioneering. I think it lets down the country.
“It’s not the representation of how we should weld together, trying to keep the peace.”
The veteran added Sunak had decided to “bail out” and “let them get on with it because ‘I want to stand in the election, I want my seat back’”.
Former head of the Royal Navy, Lord West of Spithead, said Sunak’s decision was “stupid”.
He added: “I would have thought he’d have been desperate to be involved in such a major, major event of such significance to so many millions of people across the United Kingdom, let alone around the world.
“I find it very strange that he should do such an own goal… I think it comes over very badly.”
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