BBC Breakfast airs heated scenes as Naga Munchetty brands guest 'patronising'

22 February 2024 , 13:16

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The comments made by a BBC Breakfast guest certainly left Naga perplexed (Image: BBC)

BBC Breakfast's Naga Munchetty labelled a guest's comment "patronising" which forced them to apologise.

Naga and her co-anchor Charlie Stayt led the programme on Thursday (February 22) with with the BBC show focusing on medications running low across the country and the desperate lengths people have resorted to. While there have always been shortages in medicines for conditions such as asthma, ADHD and diabetes, in recent years, the focus has now shifted to epilepsy drugs, which are also dwindling.

Epilepsy is a critical brain illness affecting over half a million people in the UK - many depending on daily medication. Speaking on this subject were Claire Pelham and Thorrun Govind. Claire leads the Epilepsy Society while Thorrun is a pharmacist and healthcare lawyer. They discussed why they believe epilepsy medications have run short.

Claire instantly explained that she hadn't meant for her comments to be taken the wrong way (BBC)

According to Pelham, drug manufacturers agreed during Brexit preparations to maintain a six-week rolling stock to prevent medication depletion. However, she expressed her suspicion without strong evidence: "What we suspect, it's a suspicion, not evidence, is that they've reverted to just-in-time delivery now."

Claire explained that this might have been done as a cheaper alternative. When asked what people could do right now, she suggested: "For the individual person, the most important thing is not to become stressed and to try and keep calm and plan ahead." Naga swiftly remarked that the recommendation could come across as patronising, which prompted an instant sorry from Claire. "No, because I want to aid with this," Naga replied, adding: "The reason you do this is because stress and anxiety can be a trigger". Claire nodded in agreement.

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She said: "Exactly, the last thing we want is the anxiety about the shortage to initiate a seizure for somebody which might mean they lose their driving license and affect their life in so many ways. So there's help and support on our helpline and it's really important to plan ahead, make sure you give yourself at least a week from prescription in hand to when your tablets run out."

Last month, fans raised eyebrows when Naga wasn't seen on BBC Breakfast for three weeks. The 48-year-old usually hosts the show with Charlie, who's 61, from Thursday to Saturday every week. The programme saw several other presenters covering for Naga, names like Sally Nugent and Nina Warhurst, who returned in January after a six-month maternity leave following the arrival of her third child. Finally, earlier this month, the star broadcaster found her way back to the famous red sofa, but the reason behind her unexpected time away remained unspoken.

BBC Breakfast airs daily from 6am on BBC One.

Daniel Bird