Rishi Sunak slammed for 'surrender' poster showing child with hands raised

27 June 2024 , 10:13

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Brendan Cox, the wife of murdered MP Jo Cox, appeared to criticise the attack ad

Rishi Sunak has been branded "desperate" for an anti-Labour poster showing people with their hands raised saying "surrender".

The PM faced a furious backlash after posting an image on his personal X/Twitter account that showed the backs of a man, a woman and a young child with their hands raised in the air. The caption reads: "Don't surrender your family's future to Labour."

Brendan Cox, the husband of murdered MP Jo Cox, criticised the attack ad. He quoted Mr Sunak's post and responded: "Labour are going to gun down your family. Don’t pretend you weren’t warned… Er…" Labour MP Ms Cox was shot and stabbed multiple times on her way to a constituency surgery in 2016.

Rishi Sunak was criticised after posting the anti-Labour 'surrender' ad on his Twitter

He added: “Election campaigns are always fraught, but suggesting that if the other party get in you might have to surrender your family is just bizarre. If it wasn’t so ridiculous it would be offensive."

Keir Starmer said he was "surprised" by the poster and branded it "desperate". Asked about the Tory poster on a visit to a college in Staffordshire, he said: “I think this is really desperate stuff and I'm surprised by it. I think it underlines the difference between the two campaigns now.

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Keir Starmer branded the poster 'desperate' (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)

The PM was criticised after posting the image on his personal X/Twitter account (Getty Images)

“They’re running a very negative campaign, nothing about the future of the country. I'm really pleased that we are making that positive case for the country because an election ought to be about how you're going to fix the problems and take your country forward. We're answering that question. The Conservatives are getting deeper and deeper into desperation now.”

Brendan Cox, the husband of murdered MP Jo Cox (above), said the poster was 'ridiculous' (ITV)

People on social media questioned what members of the armed forces, who have been in genuine hostage situations, would feel about seeing the image. Historian Glen O'Hara wrote: "This is what they've come to. Utter dogturd comms that must have Tories tearing their hair out in frustration. Just rubbish."

Labour councillor Richard Olszewski, who represents Camden in London, described the post as "offensive". "This is just like Churchill’s infamous 'Gestapo' jibe at Labour in the 1945 election," he said. "It’s divorced from reality, offensive and, like Churchill’s in ‘45, it won’t work. The Tories are stoking divisions, Labour is healing them."

A Labour councillor compared the attack ad to a Winston Churchill comment about the Nazi secret police

He was referring to Sir Winston invoking the reference to the Nazi secret police during an election campaign. The former PM went as far as to stay that if Labour were elected it would need to "fall back on some kind of Gestapo" to implement its policies.

Shadow Minister Chris Bryant pointed out the PM "didn’t stay for the D-Day commemoration". He added: "Half of your candidates have given up. And now you talk of surrender?" Earlier in the campaign, Mr Sunak faced a major backlash for leaving a D-Day 80th anniversary event early.

Sophie Huskisson