LONDON – British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologized on Thursday after removing his seatbelt to film a campaign video in the back of a moving car.
Sunak’s spokesman said the UK leader had made a “brief error of judgment” by ditching the belt as he recorded a social media hit aimed at talking up the government’s local funding plans.
In the clip, recorded for Instagram, Sunak addresses the camera without wearing safety equipment while the vehicle he is in continues to move. Under British law, drivers and passengers Not wearing a seatbelt while driving can face a fine of up to £500, with some limited exemptions including for emergency service personnel.
A Downing Street spokesman said Sunak – who had previously been fined by police for breaching coronavirus rules – “fully accepts that this was a mistake and apologises.”
The spokesman said: “The Prime Minister believes that everyone should wear seat belts.
“It was an error of judgement, he briefly took off to film the clip that you have seen, but he admits it was a mistake.”
The omission was seized upon by the opposition Labor Party, which tried to hammer Sunak over a previous clip which showed her struggling to use a contactless debit card.
A Labor spokesman said, “Rishi Sunak doesn’t know how to manage seatbelts, his debit card, a train service, the economy, this country.” “This list is growing every day, and it is making for an endlessly painful scene.”