'You’re undermining the UK’s position' Campbell under fire for siding with Irish PM
A BBC anchor and a leading Brexiteer made Alastair Campbell squirm during an interview today over his controversial comments which appeared to encourage a bad Brexit deal.
Alastair Campbell suffered a car-crash interview this morning as he struggled to defend his controversial Brexit comments on the Irish Prime Minister.
Yesterday, the Remain-supporting activist tweeted the Irish leader Leo Varadkar should play hardball with Britain over his country's border with the UK.
During an intense exchange on the BBC's Sunday Politics, Mr Campbell struggled to fight off claims he had "undermined his own country".
Host Sarah Smith quizzed Mr Campbell: "You don’t want a good deal? You were tweeting yesterday advising the Irish PM to play hardball with the UK.
"It sounds like you’re undermining the UK’s position. Whose side are you on?"
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Brexiteer MP and Leave campaigner Gisela Stuart added: "You are encouraging other countries to give us a bad deal. I resent that.
"Rather than encouraging other countries to undermine this country, we should work together to get a good deal!
"You want a bad deal to prove you’re right. You want to make it a self-fulfilling prophecy to ensure Brexit is a disaster.
Mr Campbell looked stunned as he tried to defend his tweet and insisted he was not undermining Britain.
He said: "I am trying to pose questions as to how they plan to do it because the parliament is not doing its job properly.
"I am on the side of the UK and I worry that if we go down this chaotic, shambolic path we will do lasting damage to the country I love.
"I don’t care about the EU, I care about Britain."
BBC
BBC
It sounds like you’re undermining the UK’s position. Whose side are you on?
He added: "The rest of the world is laughing at us.
"The Irish PM is absolutely right to call out this Government's incompetence. They are putting the peace process at risk.
"As the chaos mounts, as the cost mounts and the lies are exposed, the public will change its mind."
Smith later criticised Mr Campbell for claiming that it was a "myth" the EU needed the UK more than the other way around.
She said: "They sell £80bn more to us than we sell to them. Germany alone has a £26bn deficit with us."
Despite this, Mr Campbell reiterated this claim was a delusion of Brexiteers.
