'He set the rules and broke them!' Eddie Mair's tense clash with caller defending PM

12 April 2022, 17:11 | Updated: 12 April 2022, 17:15

Eddie Mair clashes with caller who defends PM on partygate fine

By Seán Hickey

This caller insists we should 'move on to the bigger issues in the world' instead of calling for Boris Johnson to resign after being fined over partygate.

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Pressure is piling on Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak after the pair were found to have broken the government's own lockdown rules by attending a party for the PM's birthday during lockdown.

Steven phoned in to tell Eddie Mair that we should "move on to the bigger issues in the world" instead of calling for Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak to resign.

"Does obeying the law for the PM not really matter?" Eddie asked, shocked by the caller's points."He set the rules and he broke them!"

The caller justified his point: "If he sits down in his own office in Number 10 Downing Street with his wife and perhaps Rishi Sunak pops in, that isn't a massive, massive massive, offence."

'Who made the law, Tom? Did the man down the street make the law or did Boris Johnson?'

"Do you think Boris Johnson misled the House of Commons?" Eddie asked. "I don't think he did."

Eddie couldn't believe his ears. "He told us all to do certain things and then he did the opposite, and the police have agreed that he did the opposite."

"Some people were fined thousands of pounds for throwing snowballs!"

He went on: "This is the man who made the rules and then broke the rules and for you that's just a minor matter."

The caller took aim at "the people who are bending themselves out of shape" calling for the PM to resign when he has been punished enough.

"Your rationale...I'm not sure it all stacks up", Eddie concluded.