GMB fans rage over Ed Balls bias in furious on-air | UK News

Good Morning Britain viewers had been left enraged this morning as they tuned in to see a fiery wealth-tax debate hit boiling level as Green Party chief, Zack Polanski, hit back at presenter, Ed Balls. Balls claimed that “economists” opposed the Green Party’s plans to repeatedly tax rich people and said: “You can do a big wealth tax if it’s a surprise and you do it once. But if you try and do it every year, then what happens is people change their behaviour, they move the assets, and you don’t raise any money.”

Showing his disbelief, Balls added: “And you’re saying you can do this every year. Polanski doubled down, as he stressed that it’s “not so easy to move an asset” when the ultra-rich claim they’d simply shift money abroad. “Look at the Duke of Westminster,” Polanski said. “He owns half of Mayfair. You can’t just pick up Mayfair and move with it.”

Polanski argued that the experts Balls referenced aren’t the neutral voices they’re made out to be, saying many are funded by or aligned with “the same multimillionaires and billionaires” whose wealth a tax would target.

And on social media, many were quick to agree with him as one typed: “Ex Labour minister Ed Balls, who occurs to be married to the Foreign Secretary, invokes ‘economists’ to assault the Green Party’s proposal for a wealth tax. Well accomplished to @ZackPolanski for declaring economists aren’t neutral arbiters of reality but are often defending energy and wealth.”

Another replied: “Plus, he does a podcast with George Osborne, who gave the nation horrible austerity; Zack is basically exposing all of them.”

A 3rd commented: “Thank you very a lot. That’s like saying because Rachel studied PPE, she’s in this recreation for the people. 95% of economists in public workplace work for their governments and help with coverage making that firstly defend authorities pursuits, not the voting population.”

Back in 2024, Balls continued to face mass criticism since his tenure on the daytime show, as he is married to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, whom he had even interviewed on air.

In response to accusations that the interview represented a conflict of interest, an ITV spokesman told the BBC it considered its interviews “truthful and duly neutral”.

“Following a weekend of rioting and national unrest, GMB featured a vary of interviews and discussions around this national emergency on today’s programme,” the broadcaster told BBC News.

“[These] included James Cleverly, Shadow Home Secretary and Yvette Cooper, Home Secretary. We are glad that these interviews had been balanced, truthful and duly neutral.”