Rishi Sunak mocked Liz Truss, Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock delivered a speech packed with jokes to Westminster journalists ahead of the Tory conference.
As well as a series of gags about his own dress sense, and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, Mr Sunak also made light of karaoke sessions at the upcoming Tory gathering in Manchester.
He said: “I have heard on the grapevine that Nadine (Dorries) and Boris are doing Nothing Compares 2 U. Liz Truss is apparently covering Shaggy’s It Wasn’t Me.”
“I will be performing Elton John’s classic Tiny Dancer,” he added.
In a further swipe at Ms Truss, Mr Sunak said: “It has been quite the year in British politics. We’re almost a year to the day on from what we might euphemistically call ‘the events that led to my becoming prime minister’.”
He said he was glad to see her “quietly reflecting… not least on who is to blame”.
The prime minister also took aim at Mr Hancock, the former secretary of state for health who lost the Tory whip over his appearance on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
Mr Hancock, a regular user of TikTok – who is set to stand down at the next general election, also appeared on Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.
Mr Sunak said: “Arguably looking back over this tumultuous year, no-one has had a busier year than Matt Hancock. It’s hard to keep up – I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins. And that’s just one reason why I’m so proud to have introduced the Online Safety Bill. It is designed to prevent the spread of harmful, malicious and undignified content – just like a 44-year-old former health secretary lip syncing to a Barbie song on TikTok.”
The prime minister ended his speech on a more serious note by paying tribute to the late BBC journalist George Alagiah, who died earlier this year aged 67 from bowel cancer after being first diagnosed in 2014.
He said: “I grew up watching George’s fearless, compassionate reports on TV. From the appalling genocide in Rwanda to the hopeful Mandela years in South Africa. A brilliant, brilliant journalist, by all accounts a kind and humble man. He represented the very best of this country’s long and noble tradition of journalism.”
Mr Sunak’s address came after speeches from Westminster journalists including Hugo Gye, who told an anecdote about the teetoal prime minister sampling honey tequila on his stag do. Mr Gye added: “Boris Johnson, by the way, denies knowledge of honey tequila. He says he’s sure he’s never met her.”
