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Chris Philp was widely mocked today for asked a Question Time audience if Rwanda 'is a different country from Congo'.
But but it is not the first time he has been publicly pilloried for an apparent lack of knowledge.
The Policing Minister was laughed at on the BBC debate programme last night for his gaffe, which came as he was grilled about the government's plan to deport migrants who cross the Channel in small boats, to East Africa.
He was asked if asylum seekers originating in the Democratic Republic of Congo, could be sent to Rwanda. The two countries neighbour each other and there is an ongoing conflict between the two nations.
In response, the minister said: 'Well Rwanda is a different country from Congo, isn't it?' His response sparked laughter and mockery, and gave birth to what will surely become a popular political meme based on Labour shadow minister Wes Streeting's bemused reaction.
But Mr Philp, a married father of two and MP for Croydon South has previously hit the headlines for putting his foot in it on other issues as well. He has also been a bit of a fall guy for more senior ministers when appearing on TV and radio.
'Strengthening' Sterling falls off a cliff after tweet
Before being demoted to his current post Mr Philp was briefly a senior Treasury minister under prime minister Liz Truss.
As his boss, Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was on his feet in the Commons delivering his infamous 'Emergency Budget' on September 23, 2022, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Mr Philp tried to help with some top optimism on social media.
Treasury ministers have long avoided commenting on currency issues - partly because their remarks risk moving the markets and backfiring.
At 10.17am he tweeted 'Great to see Sterling strengthening on the back of the new UK Growth plan' accompanied with a chart showing a brief spike versus the US dollar at 10am.
But 27 minutes later it had hit another 37-year low and by the evening had come close to an all-time low against the US currency, as the markets reacted with panic to the economic plan, which eventually cost Ms Truss, Mr Kwarteng and Mr Philp their jobs.
Pictured: The pound spiked at 10am while Kwasi Kwarteng was announcing his mini budget
Pictured: By 10.44am the pound had slumped to a new record low within minutes of the spike
It dipped under $1.09 - within sight of the $1.0545 it hit in March 1985. Additionally, the yield on gilts - effectively the interest on government borrowing - also saw the biggest one-day rise in decades, while FTSE 100 tumbled below 7,000 for the first time since March.
Three weeks later he was sacked by Ms Truss along with Mr Kwarteng, swapping jobs with paymaster general Edward Argar.
Taking the rap for 45p tax axe fiasco
In October 2022 Mr Philp was blamed for the idea of axing the 45p top income tax rate paid by people earning more than £150,000 - as Chancellor Mr Kwarteng was forced to reinstate it.
He and Ms Truss executed an extraordinary U-turn on the plan to scrap the top rate to head off a massive Tory revolt from dozens of MPs who planned to refuse to back the move in the Commons.
Mr Philp faced a gruelling interview with Sky's Kay Burley, who asked about reports that the policy was introduced by him during Liz Truss's Tory leadership campaign, which he supported.
'I wouldn't describe it as my idea, no,' he said, adding: 'These are broad-based discussions, lots of people are involved, the decisions are taken by the prime minister and the chancellor. I was one of many people involved in those discussions.'
Mr Philp was among the other ministers who spoke enthusiastically about the proposal, insisting he would give the Budget '9.5 out of 10' despite ensuing chaos on the markets.
But even after Mr Kwarteng announced he would keep the tax rate for 600,000 rich Britons, Mr Philp insisted there was a 'strong economic case' for abolishing it.
He told Sky News it would help the UK's 'international competitiveness, but added: 'It has become very clear over the last few days that the public and parliamentary opinion don't like the idea for a variety of reasons and so we have responded to that because we are a Government that listens and I think that is a good thing.'
Facing the wrath of Martin Lewis over Treasury's London house price claim
In early October 2022 Mr Philp was hit by a broadside from money saving guru Martin Lewis over Treasury claims that prospective homebuyers with a £30,000 salary could purchase a property in London thanks to tax cuts.
The consumer champion and Good Morning Britain presenter took to Twitter to urge the Treasury to delete a tweet that said first-time buyers could soon snap up property in the capital after Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng outlined the Growth Plan.
The Treasury's post, published on September 29, claimed under the Government's tax-cutting spree an average person earning £30,000 would save £11,250 on stamp duty and £1,050 on energy bills and an additional £400 on tax.
The first-time buyers would be saving an extra £12,700-a-year but, as those online pointed out, this would mean purchasing a 'representative terraced house' that cost an average of £600,000 in order to make the savings described by the Treasury.
The Treasury had suggested that a first-time buyer earning £30,000-a-year and living in London could afford a terraced home thanks to the Government's Growth Plan
The consumer champion and Good Morning Britain presenter took to Twitter to urge the Treasury to delete the tweet
Mr Lewis described such projections as 'nonsense' and outlined how the finances of someone on an annual salary of £30,000 would buckle under the pressure of repaying their mortgage - with interest rates spiking in recent months.
The financial journalist, interviewing Mr Chris Philp on Good Morning Britain, said: 'Now, on my calculations, to save £11,250 on stamp duty you have to be buying a house as a first-time buyer of £500,000 or more.
'The cheapest fixed-rate mortgage on a £500,000 property with a 10 per cent deposit leaves you with payments of £2,400 a month, which is £28,000 a year.
'But your example is for somebody who earns £30,000 a year. Clearly, they would not get that mortgage. And clearly on £30,000 a year before tax you cannot pay a mortgage of £28,000 a year.
'This seems fundamentally irresponsible for the Treasury to be putting out this kind of statement in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis.'
