BOSS OF FIRM THAT PICKED CROWD: IT WAS UNFAIR

AMBER Rudd was treated unfairly and given a hard time by the audience of Wednesday night’s controversial BBC TV debate, according to the boss of the firm that picked those who attended.

ComRes chairman Andrew Hawkins said the BBC had approved the audience makeup and admitted the ‘complex’ debate was skewed.

He added: ‘If you have a panel of people – one from the governing party (Conservatives), one from what’s regarded as a Right-wing party (Ukip) and five from broadly Left-wing parties – and you give those speakers equal airtime, it means you’re giving five slots of airtime to the Left-wing parties for every two slots to the not so Left-wing parties.

‘Therefore it’s inevitable that the cheering is going to be skewed in one direction.’

He appeared to acknowledge that Miss Rudd had been treated unfairly, saying: ‘There is no question in my mind that Amber Rudd, and to an extent Paul Nuttall (of Ukip), were up against a more vocal crowd – that is for sure.

‘But when half the audience is clapping (Jeremy Corbyn) you don’t hear the ones who aren’t clapping.’

The BBC yesterday blamed ‘vocal’ Left-wingers for making its TV debate audience sound biased.

The row came as Philip Hammond’s future was thrown into further doubt yesterday after Theresa May, praising Miss Rudd’s performance in the debate, refused to comment on whether she would make her Chancellor.