Rachel Reeves lunches on her own handmade cheese sandwiches to save £5 instead of going to Pret A Manger, she has told Sky News.
The chancellor has set herself against the likes of many in Westminster who descend on the popular chain every day.
Former foreign secretary Dominic Raab, for example, was known for his fondness of chicken Caesar baguettes from Pret, and previous chancellors Jeremy Hunt and Rishi Sunak were also seen ducking into one of the cafes near parliament.
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And not for Ms Reeves is it a steak lunch championed by leader of the opposition, Kemi Badenoch.
Speaking to Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the chancellor explained her lunch routine on the day of the interview.
“And then, sort of living up to my sort of reputation of believing in value for money, I popped upstairs, made myself a cheese sandwich and had that for lunch.
“And now I’m with you.”
The chancellor says she does sometimes go to get lunch from Pret, but otherwise her midday meal consists of cheddar between two slices made in the kitchen in her flat in Downing Street.
Asked if she was not too busy running the UK’s finances for a culinary diversion, Ms Reeves said: “Well, it doesn’t take long to make yourself a sandwich. And you save £5 for the process.”
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The chancellor’s love of the sandwich puts her at odds with Ms Badenoch.
Speaking to The Spectator at the end of last year, the Tory leader claimed that “lunch is for wimps”.
She went on: “I’m not a sandwich person, I don’t think sandwiches are a real food, it’s what you have for breakfast… I will not touch bread if it is moist.”
Instead, Ms Badenoch said she would “sometimes” get a steak.
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Asked if she thought sandwiches were for “wimps”, Ms Reeves laughed.
“Oh yes – I forget about that,” she said.
“I didn’t go upstairs to make myself a steak… I haven’t got that much time on my hands.”
The chancellor won’t have worry about her lunch habits causing any ructions in Downing Street – the prime minister previously declared sandwiches a “great British institution”.
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