Watch: Kay Burley’s ‘gotcha’ backfires

After a brief hiatus during the course of the country’s morning period, it appears that the British broadcasters are back to doing what they know best: namely, trying to catch out politicians.

Mr S wonders though if some of them may need a bit better material. This week the new Secretary of State for Digital, Michelle Donelan appeared on the broadcast round where she was grilled by Sky’s Kay Burley.

In the interview, clearly thinking she was onto a winner, Burley quizzed Donelan about her brief 36-hour period as education secretary before she resigned over the Chris Pincher scandal, which entitled her to a severance payout of just under £17,000. In the interview Burley asked whether Donelan had given the money to charity as she had originally promised. The cabinet minister explained that she had been able to reject the severance payout so that hadn’t been necessary. At which point, clearly disappointed that her gotcha wasn’t going to plan, Burley muttered that she could have given the money to charity instead. In response a bemused Donelan explained that it wasn’t for her to take taxpayers’ money to distribute to a charity of her choice. Mr S rather suspects that Burley would have damned Donelan whatever she decided to do with the money... 

Watch the clip here: