Jo Coburn: Are you pleased to see & hear from Liz Truss?
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Justine Greening(former Tory MP): "Frankly, it's astonishing that she's even here... I'm staggered by the fact that there are any people in the party that still take Liz Truss seriously."#PoliticsLive#CPC24pic.twitter.com/fx2Kjf8XFq
A former Tory minister tore Liz Truss apart on live TV earlier today with such brutality that even the BBC presenter looked surprised.
Justine Greening, who was education secretary under Theresa may, said she was “staggered by the fact that there are still any people in the party who still take Liz Truss seriously”.
Truss, who lost her South West Norfolk seat in July less than two years after her colleagues kicked her out of No.10, spoke at a fringe event at the Conservative’s conference in Birmingham on Monday.
She told a packed room that the Tories would have secured more votes at the general election had she remained in power, and – despite no longer being an MP – claimed parliament has become a “shadow of its former self”.
Discussing the ex-PM’s appearance, the host of BBC Politics Live, Jo Coburn, turned to Greening and asked: “Justine, pleased to see and hear from Liz Truss?”
“Well, I think she can call us when the shuttle lands,” Greening immediately replied.
She continued: “I mean, frankly, it’s astonishing she’s even here after a disastrous Budget that torpedoed any slim, remaining hope that the Conservative Party had at of winning the forthcoming election.
“You know, I am staggered by the fact that there are still any people in the party who still take Liz Truss seriously.”
While Greening was talking, the camera panned to Coburn, who looked shocked at the strength of the former MP’s outburst.
Greening was the MP for Putney between 2005 and 2019, and served alongside Truss in May and David Cameron’s governments.
However, Greening lost the Tory whip after blocking Boris Johnson’s no deal Brexit plan in October 2019.
Truss has been the butt of the joke repeatedly since she left office, subject to public stunts and criticised by politicians across the political spectrum for her “recklessness” and the damage she caused towards the UK’s economic reputation.
But, she failed to rule out a return to parliament during her conference appearance today, saying: “I’m currently thinking about what to do.
“What is certainly true is I’m not going to give up on this fight. I think the fight of our lifetime, saving Western civilisation, and that is what I am focusing on.”
