Rishi Sunak compared the criticism he's recently faced over his wife's family company failing to sever ties with Russia, to Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.
The chancellor has been criticised in recent weeks and forced to deny that his family is profiting from Vladimir Putin's rule, over his wife, Akshata Murthy's, financial investments.
Sunak compared his recent defence of his wife to Smith, who slapped Rock at the 94th Academy Awards, after the comedian made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.
Speaking on BBC's Newscast podcast, Sunak said: "Someone said, ‘Joe Root, Will Smith, and me – not the best of weekends for any of us’ But I feel, on reflection, both Will Smith and me having our wives attacked – at least I didn’t get up and slap anybody, which is good."
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Smith has since apologised on social media to Rock and those watching the ceremony for the incident, writing: "Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive.
"Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally."
These sentiments feel oddly similar to Sunak's as he continued to tell the BBC: "You know, I think it’s totally fine for people to take shots at me. It’s fair game. I’m the one sitting here and that’s what I signed up for.
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"Actually, it’s very upsetting and, I think, wrong for people to try and come at my wife.
"And you know, beyond that actually, with regard to my father in law, for whom I have nothing but enormous pride and admiration for everything that he’s achieved," he added. "No amount of attempted smearing is going to make me change that because he’s wonderful and has achieved a huge amount, as I said, I’m enormously proud of him."
The recent criticism the chancellor has faced related to Murthy having a 0.91 percent stake in the company Infosys, which was founded by her father and operates in Russia.
The stake is worth a reported £690 million, as per the Independent.
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The criticism comes as a spate of sanctions have been imposed on Russia following Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
A number of companies have severed ties with the country, including Starbucks and McDonald's, with Ukrainian MP Lesia Vasylenko warning that companies retaining their ties to Russia are aiding Putin to 'buy the bullets that are killing Ukrainian children.'
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Featured Image Credit: Alamy/ABCTopics: Rishi Sunak, UK News, Will Smith, Oscars, Chris Rock