Second Tory minister hits out at Sunak's D-Day gaffe

Prime minister cancels a press event as backlash mounts

- TARA COBHAM

Rishi Sunak’s decision to skip a D-Day memorial has been openly criticised by a second cabinet minister before he then cancelled a press event as the row engulfing the prime minister over the blunder deepened.

Mr Sunak is said to be “despondent” over the backlash to his missing the international ceremony attended by other world leaders, including US president Joe Biden and French president Emmanuel Macron, to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings.

The prime minister did not take media questions on yesterday’s campaign trail after his awkward exchange with broadcasters the previous day. A scheduled opportunity for reporters to quiz him did not take place as was originally planned, with the Conservatives calling off the “huddle” citing time constraints, as Mr Sunak toured County Durham and Yorkshire.

Instead, the prime minister spoke with volunteers away from public view at a walled garden at Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland, before attending a village fete in Great Ayton, a North Yorkshire village in his Richmond constituency.

The PM’s decision came just hours after another cabinet minister condemned Mr Sunak’s decision to leave Normandy early on Thursday as a “mistake” as Tory anger at the move continued following the prime minister’s apology. Speaking to BBC Breakfast yesterday morning, transport secretary Mark Harper said: “People make mistakes. The prime minister has made a mistake. He’s apologised for it.”