Boris Johnson is not a good role model for children, according to a top government adviser known as the UK’s strictest principal.
Katharine Birbalsingh, chair of the social mobility commission, told Beth Rigby Interviews of Sky News that from her personal life to her messy hairstyle, the three-time-married prime minister makes her “raise an eyebrow”.
He added that although he did not know all the details of the party scandal, he did make her pause and think, “Surely I would never be able to put it on and say, be like him.” .
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Birbalsingh took center stage when, as an interior teacher in London, she addressed the Conservative Party conference in 2010 to say that the education system was broken and that it kept “poor children poor”, annoying some in the teaching profession but winning a standing ovation from Tories.
She co-founded Michaela Community School in Wembley, north London, where she is now principal, and has strict rules on uniform and behavior.
Ms Birbalsingh told Sky political editor Beth Rigby that she was a “small Conservative” but not a member of the Conservative Party.
When asked if he considers the Prime Minister a good role model for children, he said: “No, I don’t think so. No. I wish I could be, but it’s not. And that’s a little sad. .
“I like Boris, I don’t think he’s a bad guy … But I don’t think he’s a good role model for kids.”
When asked why, he said, “Well, his personal life, for example. That makes me raise an eyebrow.
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“Her hair, you know, we have strict rules in school.
“I looked at his hair and I thought, hey, I couldn’t put him on the wall and tell him, we all cut ourselves like him.
“You might think, this is a little pedantic and it’s a little silly, but I don’t really think so for our kids.
“It’s important to look professional, and sometimes Boris looks professional, but sometimes he’s not professional enough for me, so to speak.”
Asked about “family values”, Ms Birbalsingh said: “It’s a kind of thing that makes me pause a bit … ‘Boost a little bit on this.’
He said he didn’t know enough about “the pros and cons of all the new stuff at the party.”
“I’m too busy working to keep up with all this, but in a way it makes you pause and go, hmm, I could definitely never put it on and say, be like him. I couldn’t do it.”
Ms Birbalsingh’s comments come a day after another government adviser was forced to step down following remarks on the prime minister.
On Tuesday, Baroness Morrissey, a prominent city figure who had served as chief non-executive director of the Foreign Office, called Mr Johnson “responsible” and said he should resign during an LBC interview.
It was understood that Foreign Secretary Liz Truss was outraged by the comments and ordered that he be fired.