Rishi Sunak would have “loved to” have watched the Lionesses in the Word Cup final but has “a huge amount of work to do”, a minister has said.
Claire Couthinho also claimed the prime minister would also not have flown to the World Cup final if the men’s team were playing because he is “so busy”.
Asked whether the PM would have made the trip to Sydney, Australia if Gareth Southgate’s team were in the final two, the children’s minister said she did “not think he would have”.
Keira Walsh of England as she walks past the Women's World Cup Trophy after the final— (Getty Images)
“But I do know how proud he is of the Lionesses like we all are, it’s such a tremendous achievement, it was absolutely just brilliant to see,” she told Sky News.
Defending Mr Sunak over claims he was paying lip service to the women’s game by not attending, Ms Couthinho said: “The foreign secretary was there and the culture secretary was also there.
“This government was represented. And I know that the prime minister would have loved to have been there but he’s also got a huge amount of work to do.
“And I think the travel time is probably difficult. But I know how proud he is of the Lionesses.
“We all are. It’s an amazing achievement to get to a World Cup final. It’s absolutely extraordinary.”
On the day, Mr Sunak watched the Lionesses from his local pub in Northallerton.
Asked if he should have attended the match, he told reporters: “I’d like nothing more than to be able to watch England play around the world. I love football. I love sport. I love cheering on England.
“Sadly I wasn’t able to go to the World Cup in Qatar last year. I wasn’t able to go to this final but as I said, I enjoyed watching it in the pub with friends and constituents in Northallerton.”
The PM added that he was “incredibly proud” of Sarina Wiegman’s squad despite England “not getting the result we wanted”.
It came as World Cup legend Sir Geoff Hurst said a member of the royal family “should definitely” have attended the final.
Asked if a member of the royal family not attending was a mistake, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Yes, I do. I think if the royals attend the men’s game, they should definitely.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wrote to the Lionesses to wish them good luck in the World Cup final but did not attend— (PA Wire)
“It’s an English team, a World Cup tournament, a member of the royal family should definitely have gone. “No argument at all about that.”
Mr Sunak and the Prince of Wales faced a significant backlash over their decision not to attend the World Cup final in Australia, when England lost 1-0 to Spain.
Critics argued the pay would travel to the game if the men’s team reached a World Cup final.
Ms Coutinho went on to tell LBC that Mr Sunak is a “huge football fan” and a “big” fan of Southampton.
“And he’s got two daughters. And he’s been so excited about the Lionesses,” she said.
Asked which football team the PM supports, Ms Coutinho said: “The Southampton team. Is that the Saints? Yeah, he is a big Saints fan.”
William and the Princess of Wales, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis watched the game together at their Anmer Hall country home in Sandringham, Norfolk.
