Where is Kigali located? Thérèse Coffey's error while attacking Yvette Cooper during Rwanda bill debate in House of Commons goes viral

Former Deputy Prime Minister of the UK Thérèse Coffey has been trending on social media after she made an error about the capital of Rwanda. The incident occured on January 17, 2024, at an ongoing debate related to the Rwanda bill inside the Parliament, as per ITV.

Coffey was trying to criticize home secretary Yvette Cooper during the reading and said:

"I have to say, I was somewhat astonished by the speech of the shadow home secretary, who cannot even get the name of the country right, talking about the Kigali government when we are talking about Rwanda – a respected country that has recently been president of the Commonwealth."

The moment was also recorded on video and has gone viral on different platforms. Sky News states that Cooper was spotted laughing when the mistake happened and netizens are now reacting to the video. Kigali is located in the middle of Rwanda on the Ruganwa River, as per Britannica.

Thérèse Coffey's words were a response to Yvette Cooper, who was speaking on the government bill, claiming that it had led to a lot of loss in Britain and "sent more Home Secretaries than asylum seekers to Kigali." Cooper also told the Speaker:

"Former Tory cabinet ministers, deputy chairs from all sides queuing up to tell us it's a bad bill. It won't work. It won't protect our borders. It won't comply with international law. It's fatally flawed."

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Thérèse Coffey was trying to correct Yvette Cooper when the mistake happened: Netizens react to viral video

Thérèse Coffey was inside the Parliament when she tried to interrupt Yvette Cooper. While the video of the same has been trending everywhere, netizens have shared their reactions on X (Twitter):

Coffey later responded to the criticism on her official page on X (Twitter) by addressing those who were targeting her for her words. She wrote that she was "referring to the Kigali government" and continued:

"I would not call the French government, the Paris government nor the Scottish government, the Edinburgh government. Why disrespect Rwanda?"

She also shared another post, stating that she was well aware of the capital of Rwanda and added:

"The Kigali amendment to the Montral Protocol is one of the most important agreements to strive towards net zero focusing on the phase down of the HFCs. It is a key part of keeping 1.5 alive."

Rwanda became the capital of Kigali in 1962 and is home to around 1,745,555 people. The official website of the city states that the districts have been categorized into 35 administrative sectors and a new international airport is being constructed towards the east side.

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Coffey's official website states that she has served in multiple positions throughout her career, including the Secretary of State for Health & Social Care and Work & Pensions. Before her political career, Thérèse Coffey was a chartered management accountant at Mars. Qualified and is a member of the consumer organization, Campaign for Real Ale.