When Chancellor Rishi Sunak posted a picture of him brewing tea for his team members in the Treasury department, little did he know that it would lead to a social media storm.
The newly appointed Sunak, who is working on his first Budget to be tabled in two weeks' time, is expected to unveil a major infrastructure boost for the northern England region of Yorkshire – which he also represents as MP of Richmond.
In a Twitter post last Friday, the 39-year-old is seen holding a bag of Yorkshire Tea along with the message: “Quick Budget prep break making tea for the team. Nothing like a good Yorkshire brew.”
It attracted a host of trolls and negative reactions, largely directed against the ruling Conservative Party but also targeted at Yorkshire Tea – one of the UK's oldest tea brands.
Many announced a boycott of the brand as a result of the perceived Tory endorsement, forcing Yorkshire Tea to issue a Twitter statement to stress that the post had nothing to do with the company and that “people of all political stripes like our brew”.
However, the ‘storm in a tea cup’ did not die down, with Yorkshire Tea forced to issue a plea of kindness on Monday after what it said was a “rough weekend” with people determined to drag the company into a “political mudfight” despite having nothing to do with the chancellor's tweet.
In its latest post, Yorkshire Tea said: “Speaking directly now, as the person who's been answering these tweets, I know it could have been much worse. It's easier to be on the receiving end of this as a brand than as an individual. There's more emotional distance and I've had a team to support me when it got a bit much.
“But for anyone about to vent their rage online, even to a company – please remember there's a human on the other end of it, and try to be kind.”
Sunak will table his first Budget in the UK Parliament on March 11.
