Is James Cleverly the most gaffe-prone cabinet minister in history?

Home secretary James Cleverly joked about spiking his wife’s drink with a date rape drug

James Cleverly has apologised for joking about spiking his wife’s drink with a date rape drug at a Downing Street reception.

The home secretary made the appallingly bad taste remark about putting “a little bit of Rohypnol in her drink every night”, just hours after announcing a raft of measures to crack down on the crime.

Mr Cleverly, who even remarked that it was “not really illegal if it’s only a little bit”, said the comments were made during what was always understood as a private conversation. His spokesperson said it was meant to be an ironic joke.

Rohypnol and Gamma Hydroxybutyrate (GHB) are the drugs most frequently used to spike victims and leave them feeling physically weak, out-of-control, confused, or passed out.

But is Mr Cleverly the most gaffe-prone cabinet minister in history? The Independent has put together a list of his most memorable mess-ups below.

Home secretary James Cleverly joked about spiking his wife Susannah’s drink with a date rape drug (PA Archive)

“S***hole” constituency

In November, Mr Cleverly denied referring to a Labour MP’s constituency as a “s***hole” just weeks after he was appointed as home secretary.

Alex Cunningham, MP for Stockton North in County Durham, alleged the comment was made by the Tory cabinet minister and demanded an apology.

The comment was said to have taken place after the prime minister was challenged by Mr Cunningham on the level of child poverty in his constituency in northeast England.

Mr Cleverly’s spokesman said: “He did not say that, and would not. He’s disappointed people would accuse him of doing so.” A source close to Mr Cleverly later claimed he referred to the MP as a “s*** MP”.

Mr Cleverly previously denied referring to a Labour MP’s constituency as a ‘s***hole’ (AP)

“Bats***” Rwanda scheme

Mr Cleverly was forced to deny he called his cabinet’s Rwanda scheme “bats***”. In November, Labour shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper told parliament Mr Cleverly had used the word to describe the plan.

He repeatedly said he couldn’t remember saying “anything like that”. He told Sky News: “I don’t recognise that phrase. The Rwanda scheme is an important part, but only a part, of the range of responses we have to illegal migration.”

In a different interview, on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he again said he could “not remember” having used the phrase.

The Government was working to broker a new legally binding treaty on top of the £140 million deal already struck with Kigali after five top justices ruled against the policy.

Mr Cleverly denied referring to his cabinet’s Rwanda policy as a ‘bats*** scheme’ (PA)

Forgets job title in middle of speech

In the same month, Mr Cleverly appeared to forget his new job title of home secretary as he was in the middle of a speech.

The former foreign secretary was speaking at the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and National Police Chiefs Council joint summit when he said: “I want you to feel that you can speak with me and my team at the Foreign... Old habits die hard”.

Blames disastrous mini-budget on Labour

In 2022, Mr Cleverly appeared to blame former prime minister Liz Truss’s disastrous mini-budget on the Labour Party’s “negative narrative” around the plans.

Attempting to pin the fallout over the budget on anyone but the government, Cleverly told Sky News’s Kay Burley it was the fault of Labour’s negativity.

Mr Cleverly tried to blame former prime minister Liz Truss’s disastrous mini-budget on the Labour Party (PA Wire)

Forced to admit he ‘misspoke’ after BBC blunder

In 2022, former prime minister was under growing pressure to clarify her position on the welfare system. Despite expectations Mrs Truss’s plans were to be unveiled in a matter of weeks, Mr Cleverly said plans could be expected in the early part of 2023.

The BBC later revealed the cabinet minister had reported he “misspoke” during the exchange and his revelations about a policy announcement date were in fact incorrect.

Reminded of Bank of England intervention

During the same interview, BBC journalists reminded Mr Cleverly the Bank of England had to intervene to save the UK’s economy following Mrs Truss’s mini-budget.

He was later forced to admit “I’m not an economist” as he was grilled by Richard Madeley and Susanna Reid on Good Morning Britain - where he claimed the mini-budget was not to blame for Britain’s economic woes.