Rishi Sunak was lost for words as he was asked how it feels to be a loser in an awkward TV interview.
The PM was grilled on how it feels to have lost more than 1,000 Tory seats in his first test at the ballot box in local elections earlier this month.
He was pressed on whether it felt better or worse than losing to Liz Truss in the Tory leadership contest last year - where she pipped him to the post and was handed the top job of PM.
Mr Sunak, who is currently in Japan for the G7 summit, said it was "disappointing" to lose Tory councillors but failed to say what it felt like to personally lose, as head of the Conservative party.
The PM dodged the interrogation by diverting to his five priorities - on inflation, the economy, debt, the NHS and small boats - THREE times.
Each time, he painfully repeated the same rehearsed lines that he was focused ondelivering them "night and day".
The full direct line of questioning started with Sky News' Beth Rigby asking Mr Sunak: "You're one of life's success stories. You were head boy at school. You had a career in finance that made you very wealthy. Now you're Prime Minister. How do you feel when you lose?"
Mr Sunak looked awkward and after a torturous pause, stuttered out: "Sorry?"
Ms Rigby repeated: "How do you feel when you lose?"
Still unable to answer, Mr Sunak replied: "How do you mean?"
She said: "Well, you are a winner in life. How do you feel when you don't win?"
The PM said: "My focus in this job is to deliver for the country. I've set out five very clear priorities: to halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting list and stop the boats. All I'm doing every day is focused on delivering for people against those five priorities.
"I firmly believe that that's what the country wants me to do. That's what the government is committed to doing and we're working night and day to make sure that that happens."
Ms Rigby raised that Mr Sunak lost against Ms Truss in the Conservative leadership race and asked: "Did that hurt more or less than losing over 1,000 council seats at your first test at the ballot box?"
Mr Sunak said: "It's always disappointing to lose hard-working councillors. But the message I've taken is the country wants me to redouble our efforts to deliver for them."
He then repeated his five priorities again - as well as repeating that he was focusing on them "day and night" and that the five priorities are the "right ones".
When pressed whether he was "quite gutted" the morning after local elections earlier this month, he added: "As I've said it's disappointing to lose hard-working Conservative councillors."
The PM then set out his five priorities for a THIRD time, again repeating that they were the "right ones" - and that those are what he's focused on "day and night".
* Follow Mirror Politics on Snapchat , Tiktok , Twitter and Facebook .
