And he confronted a party member in the audience who told him many people believed he was “treasonous” against Boris Johnson and “stabbed him in the back”. Mr Sunak responded that resigning was the right thing to do – and that he would be able to rally the party.
“Best High Schools”
Asked by host Nick Ferrari if he would bring back secondary schools, the former chancellor said: “Yes, as you heard from me earlier, I believe in educational excellence. I believe education is the most powerful way to change people’s lives. “But I also think there’s a lot we can do in the school system as it is. It’s about reforming the system to have better grammars.” Mr Sunak’s team later clarified that the comment referred to “the expansion of existing secondary schools”. Grammar schools were a key part of the post-war educational settlement, with children across the country taking the eleven-plus to decide whether they would be admitted or instead attend modern secondary education. But during the 1960s and 1970s, most areas of the country decided to move towards comprehensive education, meaning that children of different abilities all went to the same school. In 1998, Labor decided that state secondary schools should not be opened and existing schools were banned from introducing new ability-based selection. This means that there are now only around 160 grammar schools in England. Mr Sunak’s promise to return to choice could therefore herald a revolution in the English education system.
“You stabbed him in the back”
Matthew Dransfield, a 47-year-old business investment adviser from West Yorkshire, questioned Rishi Sunak about backstabbing Boris Johnson. He said during the live broadcast: “Rishi Sunak, you are a good salesman and you have many strong attributes, but many people continue to support Boris Johnson, who has consistently made it through treacherous waters. “A lot of people unfortunately think you backstabbed him. Some don’t want to see this at No 10. “I’m not sure what planet you’re on. How do you expect to get the party through the next election?” Mr Sunak replied that he was “very grateful to the Prime Minister… I gave everything to this job”. “For me personally it got to a point where I couldn’t stay. I had a significant difference of opinion with him on how to handle the economic challenges ahead. “And with a situation like that there was absolutely no way I could stay. I had no choice but to resign and I’m sad that I had to, but it was the right thing to do and I was acting on my principles.” He said he “resigned because the prime minister and the chancellor cannot be in a different place when it comes to economic policy”. After the prosecutions, Mr Dransfield said the prime minister had been the victim of a “coup d’état” and that MPs had “too short a memory and could not remember the success that Boris Johnson achieved in very difficult times”. “He ended up getting stabbed in the back by a number of MPs and here we are watching it and it’s a bit surreal,” he said. Mr Dransfield, who said he would not vote for Mr Sunak but may back Ms Truss, said he still hoped the prime minister’s name could be added to the contest. Revealing he had signed a petition calling for Mr Johnson’s reinstatement, he said: “Many of the Commons don’t understand that we shouldn’t have this silly competition. “It is not good for this country at a time when we are facing huge problems around the energy crisis, the war. “I hope Boris can end up on the ballot again,” he said, describing the Prime Minister as “a cut above” the two candidates in the race. He said Mr Sunak’s role in the prime minister’s downfall should effectively disqualify him from the leadership, adding: “I don’t think it is possible for him to get over this act that he has committed. “I think it’s treasonous. It’s a terrible thing and it’s not good for the country at the moment. Boris Johnson won a landslide victory. “He set something up as I see it. Obviously there are quite a few politicians who felt compromised, but this herd movement, it’s a terrible thing.”
