Rishi Sunak has insisted he is the original Brexiteer and boasted of the Tories’ record on international trade since the UK left the European Union.
With polls predicting a Tory defeat in the election, and with Nigel Farage’s Reform UK attracting Leave voters, under-fire Sunak maintains it is the Conservatives who have delivered “Brexit freedoms”.
“As was said in last week’s debate by [Sky News presenter] Beth Rigby, I am the original Brexiteer,” he told the Times.
“I was proud to support Brexit and it was the right decision for our country because we can take advantage of the opportunities that are now ahead of us.
“We’re signing free-trade deals around the world, which have now led to Brexit Britain overtaking France, the Netherlands and Japan, to become the fourth largest exporter in the world.
“We were able to cut alcohol duty or beer duty in pubs, which was something we couldn’t do inside the European Union. The industries of the future, where we’re regulating them in a flexible way, that’s about growth and innovation, whether it’s artificial intelligence, whether it’s agritech, whether it’s financial services, whether it’s digital, all of those areas.
“We are embracing innovation and growth and competitiveness. That’s why we’re the technology superpower of Europe and only growing in that regard. We’re cutting red tape for businesses.”
Sunak, 44, also spoke candidly about how his Hindu faith has guided him through the choppy waters of his “death spiral” election campaign.
Hitting back at Nigel Farage’s assertion that Sunak’s D-Day blunder that he is not a patriotic leader and “does not understand our culture”, Sunak said: “My grandparents emigrated to the UK and then two generations later I’m sitting here talking to you as prime minister.
“I actually don’t think my story is possible in pretty much any other country in the world and what it shows is, in our country, if you work hard, if you integrate, if you subscribe and adhere to British values, then you can achieve anything.
“So that’s what patriotism means to me: it’s having pride in our incredible country for everything that it’s done for me and my family.”
Mr Sunak’s general election campaign has seen another damaging week, with Labour racing ahead in the latest polls.
The latest voting intention from Savanta for the Sunday Telegraph shows Labour take a 25-point lead on the Conservative Party, with Sir Keir Starmer’s party on 46 per cent of the vote, and the Conservatives on 21 per cent.
He added: “The only poll that matters is the one on 4 July. But if that poll was to be replicated on polling day, that would mean handing Keir Starmer a completely blank cheque, which would mean everyone’s taxes going up. Your home, your work, your car, your pension, you name it, taxes are going up.”
The interview came as the prime minister warned Russia’s allies they are “on the wrong side of history” and said Vladimir Putin has no interest in “genuine peace” in Ukraine, at a major international summit on Ukraine in Switzerland with Volodymyr Zelensky.
If he were to lose the election he admitted he would be“sad” not to continue his work supporting Ukraine after developing a close bond with Zelensky.
He said: “We have a strong personal friendship, which I value, but also it’s built on tangible action at all the critical moments over the last year and a half that I’ve been prime minister.”