A Tory MP tried to use one of his staff to make a point about living standards and it fell flat

Tory MP Lee Anderson is not known as the sharpest tool in the box. But his latest hot take on wages and the cost of living must be a classic in the genre. Anderson tried to use a member of his staff to highlight how personal money management, rather than grim economic reality, was the key issue today.

He appeared to be following up on his support of the rather bizarre claim that nurses who use foodbanks should budget better.

His initial tweet featured his employee, Katy. Anderson listed her financials because, he said, her circumstances made his point “pretty well”:

Katy works for me. She is single & earns less than 30k, rents a room for £775pcm in Central London, has student debt, £120 a month on travelling to work saves money every month, goes on foreign holidays & does not need to use a foodbank.

Katy makes my point really well. pic.twitter.com/8nrwTSQ4Qs

— Lee Anderson MP (@LeeAndersonMP_) January 19, 2023

But Twitter was not entirely in agreement. Before long, Anderson’s grandiose tweet was being mimicked using dogs, frogs, and fantasy characters. The backlash included the suggestion that Tory staffers were not generally salt-of-the-earth, working-class people:

Lucy works for me. She is single & earns less than 30k, rents a room for £775pcm in Central London, has student debt, £120 a month on travelling to work saves money every month, goes on foreign holidays & does not need to use a foodbank as her parents are loaded.

Lucy hates me. pic.twitter.com/jxn7JLfMKv

— Sir Frank Marcois (@frankmarcois) January 19, 2023

There was also a play on The Muppet Christmas Carol, on account of Anderson’s Scrooge-like pronouncements:

Bob works for me. He has a family and earns less than 30 pound, rents a room for 3 pounds in Camden, has student debt, £0 a month on travelling to work saves money every month, goes on holiday to Margate & does not need to use a foodbank.

Bob makes my point really well. pic.twitter.com/uEQNwgfw73

— Shar A 🫡 (@Shar_A_) January 19, 2023

Nourish thy steed

Someone even made a parody about an elf who could afford to nourish his steed through careful budgeting:

Tauriel works for me. He is single & earns less than 30k, rents a room for £775pcm in Central London, has student debt, addicted to blue mana, £120 a month on horseshoe repair and grains to nourish the steed & does not need to use a foodbank.

Tauriel makes my point really well. pic.twitter.com/iio6z827cq

— christopher macarthur-boyd – SCARY TIMES '24 TOUR (@macarthurboyd) January 19, 2023

A science-fiction android found its way into the discourse. One supposes she must save quite a bit on food bills by not having to eat:

M3gan works for me. She is single & earns less than 30k, rents a room for £775pcm in Central London, has student debt, £120 a month on travelling to work saves money every month, goes on foreign holidays & does not need to use a foodbank.

M3gan makes my point really well. pic.twitter.com/3erRjnbBjU

— Richard Massara (@RichardMassara) January 19, 2023

And someone’s dog also made an appearance. Laddie, a single labrador from Glasgow, has managed to find free rent. One imagines this is in return for being a Very Good Boy. He’s found no need to use a foodbank so far:

Laddie works for me. He is single, intact & earns 0k, rents a room for £0 in Glasgow, has vets fees, £120 a month on food and insurance, goes on UK holidays & does not need to use a foodbank.

Laddie makes my point really well. pic.twitter.com/f2r3lwExsq

— Duncan Hotchkiss (@DuncanHotchkiss) January 19, 2023

Buffoonery

Anderson’s latest rant is no surprise. He is an arch-Tory whose favourite pastimes include blogging negatively about travellers. What he embodies is the true Nasty Party spirit. For such people, the UK’s grim economic reality always boils down to blaming the victims of capitalism for their own situation.

Featured image via Wikimedia Commons/David Woolfall, cropped to 770 x 403, licenced under CC BY 3.0.