Rishi Sunak denies voters care about his wealth as he's grilled on rising prices
Mega-rich Rishi Sunak has insisted voters don’t care about his bank balance as he brushed off claims he doesn’t understand what struggling families are going through.
The PM, whose family are the richest inhabitants of Downing Street in history, was confronted with the reality that some desperate parents say they are stealing formula milk as they cannot afford to feed their children.
Mr Sunak and wife Akshata Murty are estimated to have a £529 million fortune, according to the Sunday Times Rich List published on Friday.
Labour leader Keir Starmer has warned that the Prime Minister "doesn't understand" the anxiety and pressures people are going through.
He insisted politicians have to be able "to stand in the shoes of voters and properly understand what they are going through".
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Mr Starmer has also mocked a cringe-worthy clip of a young Mr Sunak, who went to one of Britain’s most expensive public schools, admitting he had no working class friends.
Mr Sunak has faced bruising questions over his fortune (Getty Images)Pressed on whether he believed comments about his wealth and upbringing were "fair game", Mr Sunak told reporters: "I haven't really focused on it or seen all of it.
"The bits at PMQs I probably hear but the rest of it don't. These things generally don't worry me.”
He added: “I don't think most people sitting at home actually are much bothered about these things either. What they care about is what am I doing for them to make their lives better.
"As I talked a lot about last summer, I think we've moved beyond judging people by what's in their bank account. I think they're interested in whether I'm going to deliver for them and their families."
Asked whether it was "hurtful" when the Labour leader talks about his family, he replied: "These things don't bother me".
In an interview with Sky News the PM, who had a successful career in finance and then politics, also stumbled over how to respond to questions on how it feels like to lose following the Tories' local elections nightmare.
Responding to the question, he said: "Sorry? How do you mean?".
“All I'm doing every day is focused on delivering for people against those priorities. I firmly believe that that's what the country wants me to do. “
The PM was also told that one father had to steal baby formula milk because he couldn't afford to feed his child.
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"I'm very sorry to hear that," Mr Sunak said. "I know things are difficult. I would say to families in that situation please go and talk to your local council. The Government has made available £1billion to local councils for household support funds."
The multi-millionaire Prime Minister finally lifted the lid on his fortune in March as he published a delayed tax summary showing an income of over £1.9million in 2021-22 alone.
The Sunak’s global property empire includes a penthouse apartment overlooking the beach in Santa Monica and a manor house in North Yorkshire, which has its own indoor swimming pool.
Japanese PM Fumio Kishida is hosting G7 leaders in Hiroshima (Getty Images)Mr Sunak is currently under investigation by the Commons sleaze watchdog over claims he failed to properly declare his wife’s financial interests.
At a Commons grilling, he did not tell MPs that she owns shares in a childcare firm that was boosted by a key policy in the Budget.
Speaking on Times Radio the Labour chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said: “I think the big problem with Rishi Sunak is that he doesn't seem to get it.
"He doesn't seem to understand what it's like at the moment for people who are really struggling, really, just to cover quick basic costs, people struggling to pay their mortgage, struggling to cover their rent, and he's not done enough for them.
"And that's my beef, frankly, with Rishi Sunak. It's not about his family income or anything like that. It really is about his inability to actually understand the reality of most people's lives at the moment.”
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