The BBC’s Dan Walker said he hopes Michael Gove ‘is ok’ after the minister’s ‘bizarre’ television interview in which he used an American accent as he told people to ‘calm down’ about the cost of living crisis.
In the discussion with Mr Walker on BBC Breakfast, Mr Gove ruled out an emergency Budget to provide more help for struggling families.
As well as speaking with an American accent, the Levelling-Up Secretary and parodied comedian Harry Enfield’s famous Scousers sketch as he resisted calls for the Government to provide more financial support.
Mr Walker later took to Twitter to express his bafflement at Mr Gove’s performance.
‘I’ve watched our interview back a few times now. Still trying to work out what happened. I hope Mr Gove is ok,’ he said.
Furious Liverpudlians took aim at the politician for what they said was Mr Gove’s trivialising of the cost of living crisis used Enfield’s ‘calm down’ words.
One said: ‘He’s a first class weapon! Cost of living crisis and he breaks into stupid Voices! It says everything about this government.’
Another added: ‘Trying to make comedy out of peoples misery says it all about this out of touch silver spoon fed government.’
Harry Enfield’s Scousers sketch revolved around three Liverpudlians in tracksuits, with two breaking into arguments and the third telling them to ‘calm down, calm down’
Furious Scousers took aim at the politician for what they said was Mr Gove’s trivialising of the cost of living crisis
Mr Gove was appearing on the BBC after Prime Minister Boris Johnson had sown confusion in his response to the Queen’s speech.
Mr Johnson warned there were limits on how much public money he was prepared to commit, but told MPs: ‘The Chancellor and I will be saying more about this in the days to come.’
It sparked immediate speculation of a new fiscal intervention by the Treasury, but both it and No10 were quick to rule out an imminent special announcement.
Mr Gove was appearing on the BBC after Prime Minister Boris Johnson had sown confusion in his response to the Queen’s speech.
Mr Johnson warned there were limits on how much public money he was prepared to commit, but told MPs: ‘The Chancellor and I will be saying more about this in the days to come.’
It sparked immediate speculation of a new fiscal intervention by the Treasury, but both it and No10 were quick to rule out an imminent special announcement.
Labour has demanded an emergency budget saying that swift action is needed with inflation expected to hit 10 per cent by October off the back of rising household bills and food costs.
But Mr Gove accused journalists of over-interpreting the PM’s remarks.
‘It is an example of some commentators chasing their own tails and trying to take a statement that is common sensical, turning it into a major, capital letters, big news story,’ he said.
‘And in fact, when the Treasury quite rightly say, calm down, people instead of recognising that they have over-inflated the story in the first place, then say ”oh, this is clearly a split”.
‘The truth is the Prime Minister says ”Government is working hard” and the Treasury say ”Yes we are and I’m afraid the Budget is going to be when we said it would be”. That becomes a story? No.’
The phrase ‘calm down’ was a staple of Harry Enfield’s ‘Scousers’ characters in the 1990s.
The sketch revolved around three Liverpudlians in tracksuits, with two breaking into arguments and the third telling them to ‘calm down, calm down’.
Labour’s Lisa Nandy tweeted a clip of Mr Gove speaking on the programme and said: ‘What is he doing!?
The Levelling-Up Secretary also dropped a sort of American accent in a lively display on television this morning as he sought to play down confusion sown by Boris Johnson yesterday
‘Making jokes and using silly voices while families across the country are struggling to survive.
‘This isn’t a game (or an Oxford Union debate!). People are having to choose between heating and eating. Take it seriously. Do your job.’
Other Twitter users who reacted to Mr Gove’s performance took a more light-hearted view.
One wrote: ‘What was going on with #Gove this morning? Bizarre performance.’
Another added: ‘Michael Gove is still angry he didn’t get invited to any of those parties at Number 10!’
Mr Gove later – more calmly – told Sky News: ‘There won’t be an emergency budget. It is sometimes the case that the words from a prime minister or minister are overinterpreted.
‘The Prime Minister is right. We will be saying more and doing more in order to help people with the cost-of-living challenge we face at the moment, but that doesn’t amount to an emergency budget. It is part of the work of government.
‘Last night the Prime Minister convened a group of ministers – we have all done work on some of the things we could do to help. Those policy initiatives will be announced by individual departments in due course as they are worked up.’
Other Twitter users who reacted to Mr Gove’s performance took a more light-hearted view
Accused of ‘doing nothing’ for families as he defended the new legislative agenda, the PM set hares running yesterday by insisting he and the Chancellor would have ‘more to say’ on the squeeze ‘in the days to come’.
But the Treasury was bemused by the remark – stressing that it is still not clear where energy bills will ‘land’ in October and pouring cold water on the idea of an emergency Budget. One government aide said the premier seemed to have been ‘freelancing’.
Mr Johnson faces growing fury at the lack of action as inflation surges towards 10 per cent and the economy stalls, after merely pointing to the existing £22billion package of help.
He insisted he would make long-term investments rather than try to ease the immediate pain.
Instead the Parliamentary session – kicked off by Prince Charles rather than the Queen for the first time in six decades as she is suffering ‘mobility issues’ – focused on broad reforms with a smattering of crowd-pleasing policies such as bolstering police powers to tackle disruptive protests.
Schools and higher education are being overhauled to help the post-Covid recovery, while owners of unused second homes are expected to be punished, and locals given more power over housing developments.
There is also action to revive high streets, a shake-up to create Great British Railways, and a vehicle for the controversial privatisation of Channel 4 – as well as steps to ensure ‘woke’ attitudes do not hamper free speech at universities.
Sir Ed Davey has said he was surprised that the Queen’s Speech did not do more to tackle the cost-of-living crisis after the Conservatives lost hundreds of council seats last week.
The Lib Dem leader told Sky News: ‘I was expecting that after the people had said during the local election results they were not happy, the Government would take some action, but there was nothing for the cost of living.’
Sir Ed called on the Government to fund a VAT cut through a windfall tax on the ‘superprofits’ of oil and gas companies.
‘When these oil and gas companies are making huge profits they never expected to make, these are huge superprofits, it’s only fair to ask them to pay the money to help people who are having to pay those bills,’ he said.
Asked about the Government’s apparent willingness to breach the Northern Ireland Protocol, Sir Ed said it would be an ‘absolute disaster’ for ordinary people.
He added: ‘For Michael Gove and Boris Johnson and the rest of them to think that a trade war is the right way to deal with the cost-of-living crisis, an economic crisis, I don’t know what planet they’re living on.’
