Ed Balls horrified GMB viewers today (Thursday, February 9) during a discussion about the Russian war with Ukraine.
Kate Garraway was also co-hosting the show earlier – and they were joined by guests Anita Boateng and Kevin Maguire for the item.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Parliament yesterday as he requested modern fighter jets.
And Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pledged “nothing is off the table”, despite concerns about the UK’s current military capacity.
But at one point during today’s GMB segment, former MP Mr Balls asked the show’s guests a question that left viewers enraged.
Ed Balls upsets GMB viewers
The ex Shadow Chancellor, 55, pondered: “Are we now… Are we now, actually, de facto… Is Britain really at war now with Russia?”
Is Britain really at war now with Russia?
Ms Boateng replied: “I wouldn’t like to say so because I think that would be a huge, kind of, provocation.”
An eight-second clip of the question in isolation was subsequently shared on social media by a Twitter user.
It received dozens of engagements and responses, with many of those slamming Mr Balls.
Among the wild allegations tweeted in the former Labour politician’s direction were claims his words could be interpreted as those of a “warmonger”.
Others claimed he was ‘excited’ by the prospect of war.
How social media users reacted
“The state of that utter [blank],” one person branded him.
Another, one among many to swear, added: “Ed Balls is such a [blank].”
Someone else indicated they felt Mr Balls is “stupid” for his question.
They also accused TV personalities of “advocating” for war.
They ranted: “Stupid presenters seemingly advocating for another war when the closest they’ll ever get to battle is watching Dad’s Army.”
Another echoed that thought: “What a stupid man this is, have we learned nothing from the past?”
Meanwhile, another person asked: “Why is no one trying to broker peace? The media are all pushing for aggression, no voices against war.”
And someone else stated: “God help us.”
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