Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Boris Johnson thinks a tin of economy supermarket baked beans costs £1.49

The Mayor has faced a mixture of derision and sympathy from the public

Jon Stone
Thursday 14 May 2015 08:30 EDT
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Boris Johnson is facing derision after he overestimated the price of a tin of baked beans by a factor of six.

Asked to name the price of a tin of economy supermarket baked beans on LBC Radio this morning the Mayor of London said they would retail at around £1.49.

Standard versions of the question tend to refer to the price of a pint of milk or loaf of bread.

More expensive versions of the humble baked bean are available. Exclusive department store Fortnum and Mason retails a tub of sundried tomato and English mustard fresh baked beans for £3.95, made by the company Proper Beans.

One Twitter use, @SunshineDebb, tweeted “Just goes to show how totally out of touch some of these people are” while @craigoneill73 said “possibly in the food hall at Harrods, not sure Tescos would match that price”.

Others expressed sympathy for the Mayor, however. @scott7alexander said “I have no idea what they cost either” while @LascellesH said it was “embarrassing [that] people expect the Mayor of London to spend his time memorising the price of supermarket products”.

Mr Johnson was elected as an MP in West London in last week’s election, a job the Old Etonian will do in addition to remaining as Mayor of London.

David Cameron announced earlier this week that his former Oxford contemporary would also attend political cabinet meetings while serving as Mayor of London.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in