Rishi Sunak jokes Team GB shouldn’t take advice from him ‘on how to win’

Rishi Sunak opened his first prime minister’s questions as leader of the opposition with a joke about his inability to win.

The general election earlier this month saw the Conservatives suffer a landslide loss, with Rishi Sunak’s party reduced to 121 MPs, down 251. 

The Conservative vote also dropped from 13.9 million at the last election in 2019 to just 6.8 million.

Sunak told the commons on Wednesday: “To be honest, I am probably not the first person [Team GB wants] to hear advice from on how to win.”

Following the remark, the Conservative leader and prime minister went on to discuss the UK’s support for Ukraine in the country’s fight against Russian aggression.

“The UK has consistently been the first country to provide new capabilities to Ukraine, such as the long range weapons that have been used so effectively in the Black Sea”, Sunak said, adding: “I was grateful to the prime minister for his support as I made those decisions in government and in opposition, I offer that same support to him.”

Prime minister Keir Starmer responded: “Can I thank the Leader of the Opposition for not only raising the question of Ukraine, but doing it in a way which can maintain the unity across this House, which has been so important to the Ukrainian people?”

He added: “I can assure him that we are, of course, talking to Ukraine about how they deal with the Russian aggression that they are facing, have been facing for many, many months.”

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