Conservative chairman Grant Shapps starts #letthemeatbingo Twitter firestorm with budget 'Beer and Bingo' advert

The Conservative party's chairman, Grant Schapps has started a social media firestorm having tweeted an advert to celebrate George Osborne’s decision to cut duty on beer and taxation of bingo, describing it as something ‘hardworking people’ enjoy. The reaction to the advert, which read ‘Bingo! Cutting the Bingo tax and beer duty - to help hard working people do more of the things they enjoy’ was originally tweeted by Shapps and caused instant furore on Twitter.

#budget2014 cuts bingo & beer tax helping hardworking people do more of the things they enjoy. RT to spread the word pic.twitter.com/5vbL7RDAg5

— Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) March 19, 2014

At the time of writing, Shapp’s tweet had received 1,434 retweets and provoked an angry response from many who felt that advert was condescending and showed the party to be out of touch with ‘hardworking people.'

@grantshapps @iamamro What a truly condescending, brainless pap of a post. Unmitigated arseholes, without a single exception.

— @wombat37 (@wombat37) March 19, 2014

@grantshapps I was wondering if you could just be a *bit* more condescending. Not quite there yet…

— Lee Vincent (@LeeJamesVincent) March 19, 2014

@grantshapps @PedroStephano You are a spoof account, aren't you? Has to be. On no! Wait...You're a Tory #Budget2014

— Alan Henness (@zeno001) March 19, 2014

Grant Shapps is Chair of the Tory Party. An actual chair would do less damage, and make better posters #LetThemEatBingo

— Mark Ferguson (@Markfergusonuk) March 19, 2014

Spoofs of the advert began to appear quickly after the original was released using #letthemeatbingo In response to the budget, Simon Wykes, managing director, Gala Bingo told The Drum that the company was "absolutely thrilled" that the Government had recognised bingo as a leisure pastime played by over three million a year, while alcohol company Heineken UK's marketing director, Jacco Van Der Linden, said it would raise a pint to the chancellor in response.