This is the false claim Rishi Sunak was just forced to correct

Rishi Sunak was left embarrassed after being forced to correct a false claim he made about the UK’s employment figures.

The error saw the Prime Minister get the numbers wrong by over 100,000, falsely claiming there are “record numbers” of people in work during last week’s PMQs on 26 April.

His error was spotted by numerous people, including Labour MP Sir Stephen Timms, who pointed it out at this week’s PMQs on 3 May.

Timms also made the suggestion that Sunak may be following in the footsteps of former Conservative PM Boris Johnson who misled the House.

He said: “At question time last week, the prime minister referred to record numbers of people in work.

“In fact, as he knows, the number of people in work at the moment is still less than it was just before the pandemic – 122,792 less, according to the latest official figures.

“Will he reassure the House that he’s not slipping into the bad ways of his predecessor but one and will he properly correct the incorrect statement he made last week?”

Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

Embarrassingly, Sunak, known for his love of numbers, was forced to correct his mistake on the spot, admitting: “That clarification has already been made, but there are near record numbers of people in work and in payroll and that is thanks to the actions of this government.”

It’s not the first time a claim by the PM has prompted some questions. In December 2022, Sunak claimed that the asylum backlog was “half the size that it was when Labour was in office”.

But, according to his own Home Office’s figures, there were 18,954 undecided asylum applications when Labour left office in 2010, compared to 166,261 at the end of 2022 under the Conservatives.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.