Boris Johnson raised eyebrows during his appearance on BBC Breakfast this morning when he told a bizarre story about cutting his foot on a broken cafetiere at a barbecue.
The Prime Minister was being quizzed about recent NHS figures which showed A&E waiting times are at the highest rate in 15 years.
When asked when he last used the NHS, the PM said: “I have a wonderful hospital in Hillingdon in Uxbridge which I represent and foolishly I was making a barbecue and there was a bit of broken glass on the ground for some reason or another, someone had dropped a cafetiere.
“I was jumping up and down – I think there was music playing – and a piece of glass went straight into the bottom of my foot and into my sole, my heel.
“It was absolute agony and it went away for a while and Hillingdon were incredible. This was last year.”
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(Image: BBC)
When asked about the response to his visit by hospital staff, he replied: “They said what they needed was more investment and that’s what we’re providing, the biggest-ever cash investment in the NHS, £34 billion, and we want to continue to do that, and the crucial way we can continue to do that is by having a strong, robust, dynamic economy.”
However, viewers were left unconvinced by his tale with many taking to Twitter to express their disbelief.
Tony Smollett wrote: “Can someone please fact check the ‘cafitiere at the bbq story?’ Did he really go to a&e?? #BBCBreakfast @BorisJohnson it sounded odd.”
Phil Speck quipped: “The people in this country visiting food banks, who’s family’s are below the poverty line don’t give a toss about Boris, his smashed cafetiere – and his “NHS” story is the perfect example of his upper class detachment.”
Kelly Hitchcock added: “Asked about underfunding in the NHS on BBC Breakfast, @BorisJohnson has just told an unnecessary and lengthy annecdote about standing on a piece of broken cafetiere at a barbeque. So you can’t trust him to run a barbeque, never mind the country.”
(Image: REUTERS)
Johnson was then grilled about whether he was relatable to voters, and snapped when Naga played a video of him struggling to mop a floor in a flood-hit area this week.
Ms Munchetty said: “I want you to talk about why you’re relatable.”
Johnson snapped back: “I can’t possibly say ‘I’m relatable!.. that’s ridiculous.'”
The BBC then rolled the footage of him mopping in Matlock, Derbyshire, and the BBC presenter asked: “Have you ever used a mop before?”
(Image: BBC)
Johnson replied: “Yes, I thought that was very unfair.
Ms Munchetty: “You’re just swishing around the water.”
Johnson: “Oh so you don’t like my mop work.
Ms Munchetty: “You’re not squeezing the mop for a start.”
Johnson: “I was! You see I’m squeezing it there.”
Asked on why he is relatable to families across the UK, Mr Johnson said: “What I want for every child in this country is to have a sense they can achieve their full potential.”
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He said he believes the reason people voted Brexit is because “there are too many parts of the country where people feel they don’t have the opportunities they could”.
Finishing off the interview, he said: “I love this country and I want to serve it.”
But he was unable to answer why he connected with the British public or how he was relatable to other families and said: “I have not the faintest idea.”
