Rishi Sunak roasted for British food buying mistake amid farming crisis

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing fresh fury over a brutal social media post urging Britons to buy local produce. People were quick to point out the serious consequences of Brexit for fame and trade.

Rishi Sunak criticized for urging voters to ‘buy British’

Rishi Sunak has been criticized for telling voters to “buy British” as the perils of Brexit continue to hit households across the country.

Just days after the Prime Minister was ridiculed after claiming he deprived himself of many things as a child – including Sky TV – Britons have shared fresh fury after reading his brutal remark on X, formerly Twitter.

Mr Sunak wrote: “We shouldn’t rely on foreign food. Buy British” on his official account, and replies are flooded with people explaining exactly why it’s difficult to buy local in Britain.

Ignoring the Prime Minister’s plea, one woman wrote: “Your government has ensured that British agriculture is in crisis! You allowed foreign imports to crush British food, removed our labor supply and subsidies, put trade barriers in the way and paid us to plant flowers!”

Meanwhile, another bluntly quipped: “People shouldn’t rely on food banks but 14 years of bloody Tories made it all possible.” » A third simply asked: “Why did you then make it harder for farmers to get supplies, genius?” »

A report published last year by the London School of Economics (LSE) found that British households have paid a whopping £7 billion since Brexit to cover the extra cost of trade barriers on food imports from of the EU. Researchers have reported that trade barriers systematically hamper imports, increasing bills by £250 on average during the cost of living crisis.

Meanwhile, a 2023 survey by Farmer’s Weekly captured the mood of British farmers seven years after Brexit. According to the study, around 70% of farmers who grow cereals believe that leaving the EU has been negative for their business, while 76% of rapeseed producers think the same. Similarly, 68% of beef, dairy or sheep farmers had a negative perception. And the two sectors that are even more negative are those of vegetable growing (81%) and pig breeding (79%).

Food critic Jay Rayner also didn’t hesitate to respond to Rishi’s social media post. Quoting the post, he said: “Where do I start? There is not enough British food to buy because the crude, malformed, malignant Brexit clown show you have promoted has undermined food production, thanks to poorly thought-out subsidies, in addition, Brexit-induced border controls have blocked imports.