The House of Commons, which has seen many dramas over the centuries, witnessed another historic moment on Wednesday when Rishi Sunak took his seat for the first time for Prime Minister’s Questions.

This is a weekly affair when the Prime Minister has to fend off opposition bouncers aimed at the head.

On the whole, Rishi’s first PMQ didn’t go too badly.

The BBC’s political editor, Chris Mason, who was watching from the press gallery commented: “Conservatives have found their voices and smiles again. Both have been absent in recent weeks – their demeanour sullen, their heads sunk. Rishi Sunak played what Conservatives see as their greatest hits: Brexit, levelling up and talk of winning elections. The Tory backbenches lapped it up. Sunak sounded confident, but from here in the press gallery there was a sense of his nerves – his hand and leg twitching occasionally as he stood at the dispatch box.”

In the Daily Telegraph, Gordon Rayner, the paper’s associate editor, summed up: “If Rishi Sunak’s first Prime Minister’s Questions is anything to go by, the Conservatives are back in the game. The new Tory leader bulldozed his way through Sir Keir Starmer’s attack lines, earning such raucous cheers and thumps from his colleagues that the Speaker had to warn them not to ‘damage the furniture’.”

Before he was attacked by Starmer for bringing back Suella Braverman as home secretary only a week after the Goan-origin rightwinger was sacked by Liz Truss for a breach of the ministerial code, the leader of the opposition graciously welcomed the new Prime Minister.

Stressing that Rishi was the first British Asian Prime Minister, Starmer said his appointment was a reminder that “Britain is a place where people of all races and beliefs can fulfil their dreams”.

Rishi responded by thanking Starmer for his kind and generous welcome, adding that he knew that they would no doubt have “robust exchanges”.

But then Starmer went for Rishi’s jugular: “Was the home secretary right to resign last week for a breach of security?”

Braverman quit Truss’s government on Wednesday last week after admitting sending an official document from her personal email.

In her resignation letter she acknowledged she had breached government security rules, stating: “I have made a mistake; I accept responsibility; I resign.”

It later emerged she had not resigned but had, in fact, been sacked.

On the steps of Downing Street, Rishi had promised his government would have “integrity and accountability” but his judgement in bringing Braverman back is being questioned.

Starmer alleged Rishi had done a deal with Braverman – she had promised her support in the leadership contest against Penny Mordaunt if he promised to restore her to the home office.

Starmer said that Rishi was “so weak he’s done a grubby deal and threatened national security because he was scared to lose the leadership election”.

The parliamentary leader of the Scottish Nationalist Party, Ian Blackford, “warmed welcomed” Rishi’s appointment as the first British Asian Prime Minister but then asked whether he would sack Braverman, with whom the new Tory leader had allegedly done a “sleazy backroom deal”.

Labour’s shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, is pressing for a cabinet office inquiry into Braverman’s appointment.

Rishi’s defence was not entirely convincing.

He said: “The home secretary made an error of judgment but she recognised that, she raised the matter and she accepted her mistake. That is why I was delighted to welcome her back into a united cabinet that brings experience and stability to the heart of government.”

It has been argued that Rishi brought back Braverman as a concession to the far right of the party to which she belongs.

Starmer wasn’t done. He also attacked Rishi’s wife, Akshata Murty, without naming her. Akshata was conspicuous by her absence when her husband entered the door of 10, Downing Street, on Tuesday. Rishi, his wife and their two daughters will occupy the flat above 10, Downing Street, his spokesman said. This had been their home when Rishi was chancellor, while Boris and his family had taken the more spacious apartment above 11, Downing Street.

It was revealed last year that Akshata was a non-dom citizen who did not pay tax on her earnings in India from her shares in Infosys, given to her by her father, N R Narayan Murthy. She has now changed her tax status.

Starmer had a dig at Akshata by asking Rishi if he would abolish non-domiciled tax status (which in past decades has been supported by all governments to protect the overseas earnings of mainly white British citizens). Tax is only paid if overseas earnings are repatriated into the UK.

“Why doesn’t he put his money where his mouth is?” asked Starmer.

Rishi will have to get used to personal attacks on his wealth and his wife.

Indo-UK trade deal

Incidentally, the question of the UK-India trade deal was raised later in the Commons by Labour MP Nick Thomas Symonds who highlighted “offensive comments” made by Braverman, who had said: "The largest group of people who overstay are Indian migrants."

He alleged the home secretary had “completely undermined the UK government's negotiations” – “They’re all talk and no delivery.”

In response, Greg Hands, minister for trade policy, said 16 chapters across 26 policy areas had been agreed so far. He said the home secretary was referring to “mode 4” arrangements, which relate to business visas not for permanent settlement. “That remains an area of active negotiation.”

‘Rasheed Sanook’

Washington: Social media was abuzz with memes and reactions after US President Joe Biden mispronounced the name of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during a Diwali reception he hosted at the White House.

At the reception on Monday, Biden took the opportunity to congratulate Prime Minister Sunak on his “groundbreaking achievement” of becoming the first Asian Premier of the UK. He, however, mispronounced Sunak’s name to his mainly Indian-American audience, adding a “d” to the end of Rishi’s first name and rhyming his surname with a Chinook helicopter. “We’ve got the news that Rasheed Sanook is now the Prime Minister,” Biden, 79, said.

Soon after his video wentviral and people started reacting on social media. “Watch: Biden butchersSunak’s name,” The Spectator’s gossip columnist wrotein a headline with a brief description of the incident.

PTI