Rishi Sunak went without Sky TV so his parents could send him to private school

[number10bus]

Honestly this has really annoyed me, apart from the fact it's such crap - he came from a family where his parents were a GP and a pharmacist, it's like he's literally thought of the most working class stereotype and applied that. He's so out of touch and I don't know why this one has annoyed me so much but it really has.

I'm not much older than our prime minister and we didn't have one either, or holidays and not much in the way of any luxury items and guess what my parents couldn't afford to send me to private school despite them working very hard too.

I very much doubt he lived in a house where you had to put the pound coins in the tv either or it would turn off.
Has his parents ever had to live off kidd left overs as there wasn't enough for another meal.
Sat with no heating as prepayment had run out.
Work yet still wear clothes had 10 years from charity shop

Makes you realise how he thinks you can force 18 year olds to do compulsory voluntary work, it's Winchester speak.

I remember the real struggle being if you had a shilling for the gas meter. I still have the little pot my granny used to store her shillings in, I couldn't part with it as it was such an important thing to her, I've told one of my kids they have to take it and look after it when I die.

I think I'm going to call any confusing statement "Winchester speak" from now on.

I don't think the prime minister has to have experienced struggle or poverty. They just need enough understanding of the world to appreciate their privilege and a curiosity for the struggles of those with very little.

As you say, there's a huge difference choosing between more luxuries or private education Vs choosing between heating or eating

I agree its not that we think he has to have been poor. But a simple bit of intelligence and logic would have told him that what he said was rubbish. Je is simply coming across as very unintelligent.

Mate, he's such an insufferable dick, no wonder they sent him away.

Absolutely rubbish. I've visited Sunak pharmacy many times in my life. 2 doors down from my dentist. Winchester Road Southampton. They certainly weren't going without.

I grew up in a village and went to school with a GP's son. He had one of the biggest houses in the village, along one of the nicest roads. I think they even had a swimming pool. This was the 80s.

My mum, who was a terribly rigid in her thinking thought Sky was common.

It doesn't matter to me how rich Rishi was or is. But his lack of understanding of what it is like not to be able to afford decent food, or any food, pay bills or the rent is a problem.

My mum dated a son of a GP at school. His parents warned him off her as came from a common background.

I’ve not yet RTFT, but I think he said his grandparents came here with nothing, not his parents.

And he didn't say they gave up only Sky. Clearly they simply spent less on luxuries than their contemporaries would have done. Not rare for professionals

Agreed. He doesn't need to have experienced it , just empathy and a wish to understand it (and listen to people who do)

But equally the story about the squashing of NHS salaries and soaring house prices is also an important issue for any party to grapple with

He said he didn't have any working-class friends - I expect half of Mumsnet don't have any working class friends.

With the card payment, normally the till assistant would scan the items, not the customer - that wasn't possible because of the Covid screen. He was probably a bit flustered with the cameras on him as well. He didn't have to be told where the card payment machine was after the initial mistake. I'm sure he does know how to put petrol in a car.

Starmer embarrassed himself reversing an HGV vehicle into a bollard. When he was told he had failed his mock test he said "Very good." Silly thing to say when you've just failed a test;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-politics-58887168

Exactly. It just sounded so crashingly stupid

It's not 'going without'; it's 'not having'. Going without is the basics; food, heat, shelter. I 'went without' Chanel No 5 when I was a child.
Tone deaf entitled manipulator.

@Clavinova so sunak does not know how to do a card payment?
And he pretended it was his car when it was not.

Yes if only some parents would go without Sky, they'd be able to afford the 48k a year to go to Winchester too

That's quite a leap. He hasn't done anything; he said something.

@Clavinova and Sunak keeps making incredibly simple mistakes. Even announcing the election with the rain pouring down him was crashingly stupid.

And one of the reasons many medics are not encouraging their children to go into medicine - less stressful ways to live a good life and help people

I mean, I'm looking at my deprived little kids this evening.... having to grow up without Sky TV even in this day and age. The sacrifices we make...utter rubbish!!

Now then, there was a post I saw on Twitter yesterday about his father-in-law meeting with Cameron (making a donation??) and then shortly afterwards there’s little Rishi being parachuted into a safe Tory seat. So it appears he didn’t even get that under his own merit. Mind you, old Pa-in-law is reaping the benefits now isn’t he, with all those contracts landing in his lap for his company Infosys.

Nicely put...........wish I'd thought of that.

No working class friends? Just the butler and staff then, and the man showing him where petrol goes?