The media was all over the Islamophobic heckling Jeremy Corbyn got on 13 November. But at the same time, Boris Johnson faced the ire of residents in South Yorkshire, which has suffered floods recently. One man in particular gave the PM the lampooning of his life.
“Fuck the government”
Johnson visited Stainforth on 13 November. On the streets, a number of people shared their thoughts on his leadership. One woman told the PM:
You’ve not helped us … I don’t know what you’re here today for
Another said:
You’ve took your time, Boris, haven’t you?
Johnson told the person who remarked on his tardiness that “we’ve been on it round the clock”.
But while in Stainforth, the PM also visited a donation centre, according to LBC. And the earful he got there was monumental. One man’s criticisms of the government went beyond its response to the flooding. He lampooned Johnson over the poverty in Britain, calling the country a “joke”. He said:
Fuck the government… People are living on the streets. Kids are living on the streets… Sort it out.
That wasn’t the only criticism over the impact of Conservative-led austerity that he faced at the centre either:
'Are you going to put it back, what's been cut over austerity?'
Another resident asks Boris Johnson whether he will provide more funding to Doncaster council.
The prime minister says, 'we are increasing funding for councils, I don't know the exact figures'. pic.twitter.com/84cvn4WIzZ
— ITV News Politics (@ITVNewsPolitics) November 13, 2019
A losing agenda
The Conservative government – and Sky News, apparently – clearly want Brexit to be the defining issue of this election. But general elections decide multiple aspects of people’s future lives. They dictate, for example, people’s ease or difficulty in accessing housing, food, education, support, and adequate healthcare. Indeed, these days, elections help decide the very future of the planet.
As Johnson knows well, his party has spent the last nine years building a society in which these necessities are denied to or limited for vast swathes of people. And it’s only right that this appalling record should haunt him on the campaign trail.
Featured image via LBC/YouTube