British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing criticism over photos of his dog snapped by his office’s photographer.
Members of opposition parties rebuked Johnson after photos of his dog, Dilyn, playing in the snow were uploaded to the office’s Flickr account. Some attempted to recreate the photo as part of their criticism, noting that their versions were not publicly funded.
“I can’t take a picture of our dogs in the snow as there isn’t any here. But here they are on Formby beach a few weeks ago. Unlike the Prime Minister I didn’t charge the taxpayer for the picture,” tweeted Bill Esterson, a member of Parliament and the Labour Party.
Others used the controversy as an opportunity to question the prime minister’s budgeting and policy priorities.
“Millions of hard-pressed families face a £1,000 Universal Credit cut and the government is refusing to extend free school meals during half term next week, but there is apparently no limit on the budget for a coterie of vanity photographers for Boris Johnson,” tweeted Labour’s Deputy Leader Angela Rayner.
“Taxpayers are paying for someone to photograph Boris Johnson’s dog! Is this the right priority?” tweeted Chris Rennard, a Liberal Democratic member of Parliament. “If he wants to improve his reputation, wouldn’t demonstrating integrity, competence, and compassion be the right thing to do?”
Some even knocked the Johnson ministry, claiming that the pet was the government’s most efficient Cabinet member.
“Larry and Dilyn provide the best value for money than any member of the current Government. But don’t you just take a photo on your phone yourself?” the Labour Party’s Jim McMahon tweeted.
When asked about the photos, the Mirror reported that a spokesperson for the prime minister said the photographers were “government resources,” adding that they “document the work of the Government as well as the work inside No10.”
The spokesperson also said the photographers were hired to document “not just the work of the Prime Minister but the whole of the Cabinet.”
