Rishi Sunak was cornered by a student who asked him why he “hates young people so much” in a clip making the rounds on TikTok.
While on the campaign trail in Devon earlier this week, the prime minister encountered a young man who Sunak initially thought wanted a photo.
The student interrupted him, and said: “Rishi, can I ask why do you hate young people so much?”
“Not at all,” Sunak replied, while the rest of the crowd made a general sound of surprise to the direct question.
“You’re making us go into the Army,” the man replied, referring to the prime minister’s flagship policy of introducing the national service for 18-year-olds.
“No, you’ll have a choice!” Sunak insisted as he tried to sneak past the man.
The Conservatives want to make the programme mandatory, but claim teenagers will be able to choose between enlisting with the Army for a year or volunteering for community service.
It remains unclear if there will be any sanctions for those who refuse to take part in the programme.
“I’ve volunteered all my life,” the student began, only for the PM to reply: “Then you’ll love it!”
The man hit back: “Why do I have to do it again when I’m finally coming out of education?”
Speaking as he walked out of the pub, Sunak said: “I don’t view it like that, a cultural service is a good thing for our country. And you’ll have a choice!”
The student said it was “all waffle”, and just turned away.
The clip, posted on TikTok by @henryhassell, had almost 100,000 views within two days.
Sunak has been repeatedly cornered by frustrated members of the public recently.
He was asked why “he hates pensioners” on Loose Women earlier this month, while a voter asked him how “can anyone trust you” after his partygate fine on the campaign trail.
Sunak’s net approval ratings have also fallen after just one week of campaigning, according to the More in Common think tank.
Having been on -28% when he announced the general election last week, he has now dropped to -34%.
Only those 75 and over had a net positive view of the prime minister, giving him a rating of 5%.