Channel 4 presenter Kirshnan Guru-Murthy has apologised to Tory MP Steve Baker after the presenter was caught on camera calling the Northern Ireland minister a c**t.
Guru-Murthy was heard making the comment after grilling Baker during a chaotic day for the Conservative party.
After the interview had concluded, Guru-Murthy could be heard saying: "It wasn't a stupid question, Steve, you know it. I'm very happy to go up against you on [Prime Minister Liz] Truss any day."
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He then added 'what a c**t'.
Baker was furious, telling Times Radio: "I had an interview earlier with a journalist I don’t have a great deal of regard for who I felt was misrepresenting the situation through the construction of his question, which I called out, I think live on air, or I thought it was a pre-record.
"And he clearly didn’t like that, quite right, too. But I’d be quite honest, I spent a long time live on air, calling him out on his conduct as a journalist and glad to do so any time.
"But it’s most unfortunate that he’s sworn on air like that.
"If it’s in breach of his code of conduct, I do hope they sack him – it would be a service to the public.”
Guru-Murthy has now spoke out on Twitter to apologise.
He wrote: "After a robust interview with Steve Baker MP I used a very offensive word in an unguarded moment off air.
"While it was not broadcast that word in any context is beneath the standards I set myself and I apologise unreservedly. I have reached out to Steve Baker to say sorry."
Baker replied to the tweet: "I appreciate you apologising. Thank you."
It follows a tumultuous day in politics which saw Home Secretary Suella Braverman quit the role, admitting she resigned after sending an official document from her personal email account.
Nevertheless, she hit out at the PM in her resignation letter, saying: "The business of government relies upon people accepting responsibility for their mistakes.
“Pretending we haven’t made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can’t see that we have made them, and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics."
Things escalated later in the day when MPs voted on a Labour motion to ban fracking, with Labour MP Chris Bryant claiming some Tory MPs were 'physically manhandled' into voting against the motion.
Senior Conservative MP Sir Charles Walker said the affair was 'a pitiful reflection on the Conservative parliamentary party'.
Simon Fearn