Thursday 29 September 2022 07:38 PM The hijab-wearing ex-solicitor, football commentator and the debut novelist who ... trends now

The BBC local radio journalists who took Liz Truss to task with their unrelenting questions include a hijab-wearing ex-solicitor, a football commentator and a debut novelist.

Appearing on eight stations in little more than an hour, the Prime Minister insisted she had the 'right plan' and would not shy away from controversial choices. 

Ms Truss defended her low-tax economic plans after being accused of producing a reverse 'Robin Hood Budget' that gives to the rich and takes from the poor on BBC Radio Nottingham. 

The round of BBC local radio interviews followed almost a week of economic turmoil after Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng's 'fiscal event' on Friday.

During her eight interviews, the PM was presented with examples of the potential hardship facing millions as she said she would not alter course from plans to massively cut taxes for the better off and increase borrowing by billions.     

She also faced criticism after appearing to suggest her Government's multi-billion pound plan to underwrite energy bills would cap bills at £2,500 this winter, when that figure is an average. 

The Prime Minister was lost for words at points on the round of stations from Norfolk to Bristol. 

Presenters often asked questions and delivered criticism from readers struggling with the cost-of-living crisis: 

LEEDS

Presenting for BBC Radio Leeds, Rima Ahmed, who grew up in West Yorkshire, asked the PM 'where have you been?'

'I am really glad that you're here… because since Friday, and the Chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng's mini-budget, the pound has dropped to a record low, the IMF has said that you should re-evaluate your policies, and the Bank of England has had to spend £65bn to prop up the markets because of what they describe as a material risk,' she said. 

'Where have you been?'  

The trained solicitor presented Ms Truss with a pre-recorded clip from Lee, a man who the BBC team met at a West Yorkshire foodbank.

'I'm just at the amount where I can't claim any help whatsoever,' Lee said. 'And then you get the small pay rises and then everything just goes up.

'Not only am I working harder than ever at work, prices of everything are going up – electric and gas bills are gonna go through the roof. So I have a wife who suffers with mental illnesses as it is – it is, it's quite hard. You try to cope on the outside, but yeah, not really well, to be honest with you.'

The PM responded by claiming that her plans will help struggling Britons in the long-term, and reduce inflation. 

Ms Truss insisted her plans were putting the country 'on a better trajectory for the long term' but that conditions would not improve overnight.

'We had to take urgent action to get our economy growing, get Britain moving, and also deal with inflation,' she said.

'Of course, that means taking controversial and difficult decisions, but I'm prepared to do that as Prime Minister.' 

NORFOLK

Speaking next to BBC Radio Norfolk, the Prime Minister was questioned over issues impacting her constituency, South West Norfolk.

Chris Goreham, who is the station's Norwich City football commentator and Breakfast Show presenter, questioned Ms Truss over the state of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn. 

'In the constituency next to yours there'll be lots of people who'll be going to work for the NHS in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital today and they're working in an environment where the roof is held up by, at the last count, 1,500 props,' Mr Goreham said.

'Can you guarantee that King's Lynn will get a new hospital?'

The PM responded, saying: '[I've been lobbying very hard to see improvements at the Queen Elizabeth and I've seen for myself the very difficult situation with the roof.

'And of course, we have a new Health Secretary, Therese Coffey. I do hope she'll visit the Queen Elizabeth Hospital soon to see the situation there.'

Mr Goreham said that Ms Coffey would be the fourth Health Secretary to have visited the site and questioned when it may be organised. 

Ms Truss did not give listeners a date for the visit, adding: 'Well I hope that she will be the one that delivers.'

She added that it was 'really important' the Government 'took action quickly' to 'reduce the tax burden and get the economy going'. 

KENT

Questioning the Prime Minister for BBC Radio Kent was Anna Cookson, who won gold at Audio and Radio Industry Awards this year for the best speech breakfast show.

Ms Cookson, author of novel, The Sound of Your Soul, decided to read the PM questions and comments from local listeners.

These included 'What on earth were you thinking?', 'How can we ever trust the Conservatives with our economy again?' and 'Are you ashamed of what you've done?'

Ms Truss declined to answer whether she was 'ashamed' of her actions, saying instead:  'I think we have to remember what situation this country was facing. We were going into the winter with people expected to face fuel bills of up to £6,000 pounds'. 

Asked if she will reverse the policies unveiled in the mini-budget, Prime Minister Liz Truss replied: 'I don't accept the premise of the question.' 

Presenter Ms Cookson retorted, 'You're going to have to accept it'.

She was also asked by a listener question: 'What level of suffering is acceptable to ordinary households in order to achieve your perceived goal of growth sometime in the future?'

As the interview closed, Ms Truss spoke about the plan to send migrants to Rwanda for processing, adding that the Government was continuing to pursue the plan. 

LANCASHIRE

At BBC Radio Lancashire, Graham Liver questioned Ms Truss on fracking, which has taken place in Lancashire.

'We're the only area of the country that has actually done it. And it caused earthquakes – people's houses shook. Why do you think it's safe to continue? Because none of the science has changed,' the breakfast show presenter of 13 years questioned.

Her government has lifted the moratorium on drilling despite fears of earthquakes.

She said: 'We will only press ahead with fracking in areas where there is local community support for that. 

'Fracking is carried out perfectly safely in various parts of the world, and the Business Secretary will make sure that any fracking that takes place is safe. But it's very important for me as Prime Minister, that any fracking has local community consent.'

Ms Truss was questioned over what 'community support' for fracking would look like, with Mr Liver adding: 'Scott Benton, the Conservative MP for Blackpool South, in a tweet, says that he believes that people in Blackpool South do not support fracking.'

When Ms Truss said that more detail would be given in future, Mr Liver replied:  'It sounds like you don't know.'

Ms Truss was also forced to admit she had never visited a Lancashire site where fracking had previously been attempted, before it was abandoned

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