GMB's Susanna and Ben call out broken Tory promises in tense Sajid Javid probe

Susanna Reid and Ben Shephard called out broken Tory promises as they questioned Sajid Javid.

Good Morning Britain on Wednesday saw co-hosts Susanna and Ben speak with the UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care about the planned national insurance payment rise which Prime Minister Boris Johnson intends to use to fund changes to social care and also the NHS.

The planned tax hikes go against a pledge in the Conservative Party's general election manifesto in 2019.

As the interview with the Health Secretary started, Susanna questioned: "Do we no longer believe anything the Conservatives promised in their election manifesto?"

Ben Shephard and Susanna Reid called out the Conservative Party's broken promises in a Good Morning Britain interview with Sajid Javid (ITV)

Mr Javid responded: "I think hopefully what people believe is after hearing about this package is that the government is absolutely committed to the NHS. We will support it in every way we can, especially in light of the global pandemic.

"And also we are meeting our commitments in adult social care and giving older people much more dignity as they reach old age."

In response, Susanna said: "The trouble is that commitments don't mean much if at a general election you got elected on a thumping majority on a commitment that you're not sticking to."

However, the Health Secretary said that this breaking of the promise was "the act of a responsible government" in light of the pandemic.

The Health Secretary received a grilling from Ben and Susanna about the government's social care plans (ITV)

Ben questioned: "Will that be the end of the broken promises on the manifesto?"

He also asked if there would be no more tax rises, to which Mr Javid answered: "What I can guarantee is that we will continue to be a responsible and serious government and will confront the challenges that the country faces."

Ben then asked: "Isn't that what you promised us in the past?"

However, Mr Javid blamed the pandemic once again for the challenges being faced and potential changes in methods to deal with this.

Sajid Javid blamed the Covid-19 pandemic for the change in tactics by the UK government (ITV)

Susanna pointed out that the tax rise with national insurance would be felt by the less wealthy and workers at the bottom of the ladder.

"That's a double whammy for those at the bottom end of the wage system," described Susanna.

She also accused the government of telling people facing a rise in national insurance tax and a loss in universal credit to go out and a better job.

Mr Javid instead called that her "her words" and not his, describing the national insurance rise as "progressive".

*Good Morning Britain airs from 6am to 9am on ITV with previous episodes available on ITV Hub.