Tory minister Chris Philp says he was having “a bit of trouble” during a now infamous appearance on BBC Question Time where he appeared to mix up Rwanda and Congo.
Speaking about Rishi Sunak finally being able to push ahead with the Rwanda Bill, Philp seemed unaware as to where Congo is located.
He then left the studio audience stunned as he asked whether “Rwanda is a different country to Congo”.
Speaking on GB News to Camilla Tominey, Philp insists his comments have been “misinterpreted” as he spoke out on his geography experience in school.
Chris Philp spoke out on his gaffe
GB NEWS / BBC
“I have actually flown to the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) in the past, so it was a bit misinterpreted”, he said.
“I was having a little bit of trouble hearing the question and the gentleman in the audience, i think it was pretty clearly a rhetorical question rather than a substantive question, as I think any fair-minded listener would conclude.”
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Asked by Camilla Tominey whether he did an A-Level in geography to “clear this up even further”, Philp admitted he hadn’t.
“I did do I think GCSE geography”, he said.
“But that was a very long time ago. That was 30 years ago.”
Responding to an audience member’s question during the BBC One programme, the MP for Croydon South seemed to ask whether “Rwanda is a different country to Congo”.
Chris Philp suffered a blunder on Question Time BBC
Chris Philp says he was 'misinterpreted'
GB NEWS
The audience member, who said he came from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, asked: “Had my family members come from Goma (a city on the country’s border) on a crossing right now, would they then be sent back to the country they are supposedly warring – Rwanda?
“Does that make any sense to you?”
Philp replied: “No, I think there’s an exclusion on people from Rwanda being sent to Rwanda.”
After the audience member objected that his parents were “not from Rwanda”, the Conservative MP appeared to ask: “Well, I mean, Rwanda is a different country to Congo isn’t it?
“It’s a different country?”
The comment caused a short outburst of laughter from some members of the debate programme’s audience as shadow health secretary Wes Streeting’s eyes darted around the room.
Philp continued: “There is a clause in the legislation that says if somebody would suffer, I think the phrase is ‘serious and irreversible harm’ by being sent somewhere, they wouldn’t be sent.
“So there is that safety mechanism built into the legislation.”
