Kay Burley has clashed with Johnny Mercer over “billionaire” Rishi Sunak telling voters to “hold their nerve” during the cost of living crisis.
The prime minister made the comments last week when pressed on the misery being caused by rising interest rates.
On Sky News this morning, Burley told Mercer that the remark would “stick in the craw” of hard-pressed voters.
But the veterans minister hit back by insisting people were not interested in “class war” and just wanted the PM to get on with fixing the economy.
Burley said: “He’s been in post now for six months. He’s been telling people to hold their nerve over interest rates. What do you say to people on the doorstep?”
Mercer replied: “We’re in an incredibly tight and difficult financial situation in this country, caused by a number of competing factors.
“The truth is with all of this we are in a global market and interest rates around the world are going up and inflation is a global problem.
“I think we’ve got to be honest with people about what actually brings that down because there’s a big debate around public sector pay and so on.
“The number one factor that is effecting the cost of living for my constituents is inflation. The prime minister is absolutely right that we have to hold our nerve on this and continue to bring it down.
“There is nothing a given about bringing inflation down, you actually have to do something. You have to make difficult decisions and you have to be honest with people - that is what he has always been and that is what he is being now.”
Burley responded: “You know how people are struggling and then they’re hearing from a billionaire who is telling them to hold their nerve - that must stick in their craw.”
But Mercer hit back: “I’ve got to be honest, the whole class war stuff against the prime minister really goes down badly in places like mine, which is one of the most deprived constituencies in the UK.
“They want someone who’s actually extremely gifted, extremely talented, very capable, knows what he’s on about. They actually feel like they trust him with this stuff.
“They couldn’t care less how much money he’s got, they couldn’t care less how he gets around the country. Actually, they want him to sort the economy out, to do everything he possibly can around interest rates.
“They actually feel he’s the best person to be in charge at the moment when you’re dealing with a financial crisis.”
Opposition attacks on Sunak’s wealth have stepped up in recent weeks.
At prime minister’s questions last Wednesday, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn asked the PM: “May I ask him, the near billionaire, when was the last time that he struggled to pay a bill?”
Gabriel Milland, partner for research at Portland Communications, told HuffPost UK: “Generally speaking, it’s not as if voters have a problem with Sunak being wealthy per se.
“Where it does become a problem is if politicians appear to be trying to be something that they are not.
“What absolutely did cut through in focus groups last year was the incident with the contactless payment card and and when he filled up a car with petrol and it turned out not to be his.”