Fiona Bruce has found herself at the centre of a "bias" row following Thursday's Question Time following a series of clashes with Reform UK deputy leader, Richard Tice.
Tice joined Bridget Phillipson MP, Harriett Baldwin MP, and Adrian Ramsay MP on the panel from the Yorkshire town of Skipton, where they debated all manner of topics - from Trump to Net Zero.
Tice's irritation began during the first question when the panel were asked if they should "acknowledge President Trump has turned the conversation towards peace" between Russia and Ukraine.
Green Party's Ramsay said the UK needed to "stand up" to Trump for treating Ukrainian-Russian peace talks as a "business deal", calling Zelensky a "war hero".
BBC Question Time: Fiona Bruce clashed with Richard Tice several times during the show
BBC
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When Bruce asked if he felt the Greens would say the same thing if in power, Ramsay replied that he "understood" those in government had to be "careful what they say publicly and privately".
"Actually, we all do. We all have a responsibility; we're all standing up as a nation, as a parliament; we're all standing up for Ukraine," Tice interrupted before delving into his own experiences supplying aid to Ukrainian soldiers and families.
He added: "We all know Putin is a vile, monstrous aggressor. We all stand with Ukraine, but equally, it must be right to try for peace."
Bruce interrupted to ask if he was "comfortable" with Trump appearing to put "pressure" on Zelensky.
When Tice began to answer and suggest talks should've taken place "behind closed doors", Bruce interrupted again to ask if he thought Trump was "right" to suspend intelligence sharing.
"We've got to give maximum support -" Tice began to answer before Bruce cut him off for a third time in quick succession: "That's not answering the question."
BBC Question Time: Richard Tice stood firm on Reform's stance on a number of issues
BBC
When Bruce asked the question another time, Tice explained he wasn't going to "criticise" world leaders like Trump who were aiming to secure peace.
The second question put to the panel was about raising the standard of living in a "struggling economy".
Once again, Tice found himself particularly locking horns with Ramsay after the Green politician quipped that "millionaires on the panel" should support richer members of society putting more money into the state through higher taxes.
When Bruce replied to point out to Ramsay that the Greens' plans to raise revenue had been slammed by Institute for Fiscal Studies, Tice couldn't resist concurring.
But Bruce didn't let the jibe from the Reform deputy leader slide as she hit back: "They say the same of you as well, so we'll get to that."
Tice then weighed in to say the UK "can't tax its way out of a crisis, it has to grow its way out of a crisis", which prompted Bruce to bring up the Institute for Fiscal Studies' criticism of Reform policy.
Tice explained how several of Reform's policies have since actually been adopted by the government before concluding his point by taking a dig at rising energy costs prompted by "Net 'Stupid' Zero".
Later in the show, Tice was quizzed by Bruce on Rupert Lowe MP's remarks about Reform leader Nigel Farage in which he criticised his leadership.
Tice and Bruce then began to talk above one another when the Question Time host continued to probe him on Reform's divisions, with Tice explaining he could not speak on behalf of Lowe but he lauded Farage as a good leader.
Arguably, the biggest clash of the evening came during the third question of the night when one member of the audience asked if we weren't taking the issue of climate change seriously enough.
Ramsay was inevitably first up who reeled off his party's stance on the need to "step up efforts" to reduce climate change.
But as Ramsay kept on reeling off his party's efforts and his points unchallenged, Tice took it upon himself to ask: "How's that going? How's that going so far?"
"We've got higher bills - higher bills! It's not going very well, is it?" Tice hit out.
Ramsay hit back by lauding Net Zero and calling on the government to do more towards green schemes, insisting it would cost 0.2 percent of GDP, which prompted a furious Tice to interrupt: "£30-40 billion a year! Don't lie to the British people."
Bruce then cut in - to raucous applause: "Richard! If you keep on interrupting, I'll have to put a gag on you or something!"
Eventually, Tice was given the opportunity to speak, where he ripped apart Net Zero, saying: "We're not growing because this investment in Net Zero is making our energy uncompetitive... and that means our businesses are uncompetitive.
"It's destroying jobs, it's killing industries like steel, like car, like oil and gas, that's why we're getting poorer and it's got to change."
Bruce and Tice then locked horns on a difference in opinion over whether man-made impact on climate change was as devastating as the Greens had made out.
“We are all happy to pay taxes as long as it is well spent, and that is what we are not doing very well”
— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) March 6, 2025
Reform UK’s Richard Tice says “smart taxation” and removing “daft regulation” would help grow the economy and cut “waste” in government spending#bbcqt pic.twitter.com/4MxkfNYM1b
Clips of the debates soon went viral on social media, particularly the moment Bruce threatened to have Tice "gagged".
As a result, a number of viewers were left unimpressed with the BBC host's conduct, including one X user who hit out: "I thought Fiona Bruce was absolutely disgraceful with the way she treated @TiceRichard and don't get me started on the left wing audience as per usual #bbcqt."
A second agreed: "Is it right that Fiona Bruce ambushed & harangued Richard Tice on BBC Question Time last night? Is she supposed to be asking the questions or is it a forum for the public? Her behaviour showed her obvious bias imo."
Elsewhere, a third similarly thought: "Fiona Bruce is just rude and totally bias she should not be presenting this garbage. Btw I’d love to know where you find your audience? Not representative of the British people full of woke weirdos. #bbcqt."
And a fourth echoed: "#bbcqt not seen all of it...I did see the usual shouty down bit from Fiona Bruce ....mainly to Richard Tice (surprise). It does seem though Reform have rattled a few on here...good."
However, Bruce did receive some backing from viewers who applauded her conduct as an impartial presenter, including one social media user who commented: "Fiona Bruce needs a Damehood. She commands respect in those rowdy #bbcqt fighting pits."
And a second added: "Richard Tice shows himself up... Fiona Bruce had to slap him down... The audience cheered Fiona. They know. #bbcqt." (sic)
