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Tom Tugendhat has been criticised for “deeply distasteful” remarks, after he said that taking part in the invasion of Iraq in 2003 was the naughtiest thing he’s ever done.
Asked about the naughtiest thing he has ever done in an interview with the Spectator, alongside his fellow leadership rivals, Mr Tugendhat said: “I invaded a country once which was a few years ago, 2003; I was part of the invading army in Iraq”
Evie Aspinall, the Director of the British Foreign Policy Group, accused him of “making light” of conflict.
She said: “This response makes me deeply uncomfortable. Describing invading a country as ‘naughty’ is deeply distasteful and makes light of conflict at a time of major global instability.”
Mr Tugendhat, who also served in Afghanistan, survived being shot twice in a “friendly fire” incident while serving in Iraq.
His comments come as Israel and Hezbollah exchange fire across the Lebanon border, with the UK sending around 700 troops to Cyprus in case an emergency evacuation is required.
Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer on Wednesday warned that the Middle East is on the brink of all-out war before travelling to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The Tory leadership contender gave the same answer in the 2022 leadership race.
The question was popularised when former prime minister Theresa May confessed to “running through fields of wheat” as a child.
Asked the same question as Mr Tugendhat, fellow leadership contender James Cleverly said: “It’s all on a [BBC] interview I did with John Pienaar in 2015”, referring to an interview which saw him admit to having smoked cannabis at university and watched online porn.
Robert Jenrick said he was “actually quite naughty as a child and teenager”, adding: “A lot of the things I did probably should not enter the public domain. I’ll give you one, which, I’m afraid, is by no means the naughtiest thing I did.
“After a few too many drinks, as a teenager, I did accept a bet to climb the Christmas tree in Wolverhampton’s city centre. That did not end well.”
Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch said: “I don’t care to say. It definitely is not running through fields of wheat, but I’m not going to tell you the naughtiest thing I’ve ever done.”
