Rishi Sunak had an RAF jet fly to Teesside International Airport in Darlington to pick him up after a TV appearance on GB News.
The prime minister faced an hour-long grilling in front of a live TV audience in County Durham as he tried to persuade traditional Tory voters that they should back his party over the Nigel Farage-founded Reform UK.
But contrary to suggestions on the Conservative Party’s main Twitter account, the PM struggled to resonate with audience members, who had mixed reactions to the Q&A show.
And that was before they learned about his travel arrangements, which came to light this afternoon.
According to reports in The Mirror, the prime minister had a taxpayer-funded jet fly just over 200 miles to pick him up from Teesside International Airport in Darlington rather than taking the train back to London, which takes just under two-and-a-half hours.
The PM has been heavily criticised over his use of private planes, and this is the fourth time he’s taken an RAF VIP jet to events this year.
A Labour source told The Mirror: “It’s the same old Rishi Sunak, getting whisked away from the People’s Panel to his own private plane. He can pretend to engage with the British public all he wants, but as soon as the show is over, he’s got his head straight back in the clouds, enjoying his luxury lifestyle at taxpayers’ expense.”
Flight records show a Dassault Falcon flew from RAF Northolt in London to Teesside International Airport, arriving at 7.50pm on Monday. It then took off again at 9.41pm, soon after Sunak finished filming.
Related: Sunak on GB News was ‘least viewed televised election-focused Q&A ever’
