BBC Breakfast has come under fire from viewers after an interview with Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham was branded a “car crash” following the recent turmoil at Manchester Airport.
Shocking footage emerged this week showing an armed officer stamping on a man’s head, leading to his suspension. Further chaos was captured on video in Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport, where three police officers appear to be attacked amidst the bedlam.
Mayor Burnham faced the BBC cameras to discuss the troubling events, describing them as an “extremely difficult situation” and stating his eagerness for the two ongoing probes to conclude so that there can be closure on the matter.
However, viewers didn’t hold back on social media, blasting both the Mayor’s remarks and the interview itself. One disgruntled viewer vented on Twitter: “Burnham can’t even backpedal with any sort of competency. Car crash interview.”
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Another dissatisfied viewer challenged the Mayor’s position, tweeting: “#bbcbreakfast he’s waiting for the investigation… having watched the video you don’t need any further evidence Burnham! But ‘as a politician’ he ‘shouldn’t rush to judgement”, reports the Liverpool Echo.
A third critic chimed in, highlighting the irony in Andy Burnham’s words on #BBCBreakfast: “Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester explaining that we live in a world where ‘people see only a fragment, they rush to judgement’ completely forgetting that he was one of the people he speaks of. #BBCBreakfast.”
During his chat with Ben Boulos on the telly, Mayor Burnham tackled the topic of the controversial new evidence. Kicking off the discussion, the host queried: “What do you think this new footage tells us that we didn’t know before?”
Mayor Burnham replied, outlining the complexity of the case: “Well it is an extremely difficult situation, at least this morning it has moved forward a degree because people now have a fuller picture.”
He elaborated on the incident, saying: “It confirms what I said last week that this is a situation that escalated very quickly. It was a very violent situation with issues on both sides.”
The original clip that went viral depicted a cop using excessive force, booting and stamping on a bloke’s head, leading to the officer’s suspension and an ongoing probe.
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Rochdale police station became the focal point for protestors on Wednesday evening, while Thursday’s rally in Manchester caused a bit of a stir, snarling up traffic.
But now, with fresh footage unearthed by the Manchester Evening News, the coppers are calling for witnesses to step forward regarding two separate incidents, including one where a policewoman ended up with a broken schnoz.
Earlier in the week, Mr Burnham called for calm, saying: “It is a fast-moving and complicated situation in a challenging location at the airport. It is not clear-cut, I would say, and there are issues for both sides in the situation.”
He added: “That said, it is right that the officer has been suspended. It is abundantly clear to me that the right steps have been taken.”
BBC Breakfast airs daily from 6am on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
