Iain Duncan Smith “could beat Chuck Norris in a fight”, quip Twitter users in deluge of mockery

IDS blasted after saying he could live on £53 a week

As is customary for Twitter when political controversy breaks, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has become the latest target for savagely scathing satirical quips.

Duncan Smith sparked outrage online and in the media amid a furore over welfare cuts by suggesting that he could survive on £53 a week. When asked if he thought it possible by a BBC interviewer on Saturday, he responded: “If I had to I would”.

The admission sparked an online petition calling on him to forego his £134,565 salary and live on just £53 a week, which has attracted nearly 150,000 signatures.

As well as this, many took to Twitter to joke about other things that Duncan Smith could do, including “beat Chuck Norris in a fight while blindfolded and with one arm tied behind his back”.

#IDS can beat #ChuckNorris in a fight while blindfolded and with one arm tied behind his back #ThingsIainDuncanSmithCanDo#BedroomTax

— Louise S (@Louise243) April 2, 2013

Others chose to add Duncan Smith’s “if I had to”, like Simon Ricketts’s suggestion that the cabinet minister could “punch a shark in the face, if he had to”.

Punch a shark in the face, if he had to. #ThingsIainDuncanSmithCanDo

— SimonNRicketts (@SimonNRicketts) April 1, 2013

Another was sure that Duncan Smith could “jump off a very tall building without a bungee rope”. Some had confidence that Duncan Smith could accomplish even greater feats of athleticism – Felicity Morse suggested Duncan Smith could “wrestle an Octopus and win, if he had to”.

Although a spokesperson has yet to respond, it is clear that Duncan Smith is capable of defending himself from such mockery, if he had to.