M People hit out at Liz Truss for using ‘Moving On Up’ at Tory conference
"They're liars, they're deceitful, they don't care for the north of England and they don't care for poor people," founder Mike Pickering told Rolling Stone UK
By Nick Reilly
M People founder Mike Pickering has blasted Liz Truss after she walked on stage to the band’s seminal hit ‘Moving On Up’.
Truss used the 1993 dance-pop hit to mark her entrance as she delivered a keynote speech on the final day of the Tory Party conference in Birmingham this morning (October 5).
But the song choice has failed to receive the backing of writer Pickering, who has been a vocal and long-standing critic of the Tory Party.
Speaking to Rolling Stone UK, Pickering explained how he first learnt of Truss’ song choice after receiving a barrage of messages on his phone this morning.
“I’ve already tried to get a cease and desist against them, but my lawyer says it isn’t possible,” Pickering said.
Hitting out at the government, he added: “I don’t want any association with them. They’re the worst government of my lifetime and I’m old now. They’re liars, they’re deceitful, they don’t care for the north of England and they don’t care for poor people. I can’t even get to Manchester to see my football team because the trains don’t work.”
Angling his criticism at Liz Truss, Pickering said her political success was based on “career politics at its very worst.”
“They’re all lying freaks in my opinion, but Truss was a Remainer and a Liberal Democrat and all of a sudden she’s now PM. It’s disgusting, it’s career politics at its very worst, run by very inadequate people in my opinion.”
Pickering also questioned whether Truss had listened to the song’s lyrics – which some have argued are an unfortunate reflection of the Prime Minister’s current popularity among Tory members.
“The song literally says ‘You’ve done me wrong, your time is up, You took a sip from the devil’s cup‘. I wonder if she’s actually listened to them,” said Pickering.
He added: “The Tories are just not people you trust. In the last six to nine months, I’ve never seen a Conservative MP come on TV and say ‘yes there’s a problem that we need to sort out and as minister it’s my responsibility’.
“They come on and say ‘everything’s fine, you must be mistaken’. That’s not the job of a politician. The job of a politician is to fix things, but they just don’t care about it at all. “
Criticism of the song also came from Labour councillor James Small-Edwards, who also happens to be the son of M People singer Heather Small.
“An apt choice! This tired and out of touch Tory Government is indeed moving on out,” he tweeted.
As well as the controversy surrounding the song choice, Truss’ speech was briefly derailed by protesters holding signs reading ‘Who voted for this?’
The Prime Minister briefly paused while the protesters were removed from the main conference room in Birmingham after holding up a bright yellow Greenpeace sign.
Their slogan referred to the fact that Truss took over from Boris Johnson without winning a general election, instead voted for as lead by just 81,000 Tory party members.
She has faced tough criticism since becoming leader after unveiling controversial ideas including the now-scrapped idea to abolish the top rate of tax.