Hull MP apologises for sharing 'deepfake' picture of Prime Minister with badly pulled pint

Hull MP Karl Turner has apologised after he shared a deepfake image of Rishi Sunak pulling a heady pint, and receiving a disapproving look from an onlooker.

The Hull East MP shared an image on Twitter of the Prime Minister at the Great British Beer Festival on Tuesday. Rishi Sunak was posing with a badly pulled pint, along with a woman looking on sceptically. The post quickly gained attention on the social media platform, with many users questioning its authenticity.

Mr Turner later said he had not realised the image was a fake.

Retweeting Mr Turner's original post, Science Secretary Michelle Donelan, expressed her disapproval stating that the sharing of such a "fake image" is "pretty desperate stuff by Labour".

Ms Donelan said: "In the era of deepfakes and digitally distorted images, it's even more important to be able to have reliable sources of information you can trust.

"No elected member of Parliament should be misleading the public with fake images. This is pretty desperate stuff from Labour..."

The Science Secretary then retweeted the original photograph, which was posted on the Prime Minister's account and did not feature the onlooker giving him a disapproving side-eye.

The picture also confirmed the pint of beer Mr Sunak had just pulled had been replaced with one featuring a thick, white, badly poured head of foam.

Mr Turner apologised for sharing the image, writing on Twitter:

"My apologies for sharing what turns out to be a fake image of the PM. But can I just say that Rishi Sunak needs to stop telling deliberate lies to the nation.

"We desperately need a general election. Also my apologies for not attributing the image. I had no idea it was fake."