Children living in the Afghan capital Kabul had told the show’s presenter they felt unsafe on the streets because of the risk of bombs. But Sedwill dismissed their fears.

“Here and in Kabul and the other big cities, actually, there are very few of those bombs,” he said.

“The children are probably safer here than they would be in London, New York or Glasgow or many other cities,” he said, according to comments released by CBBC before the show was aired.

“It’s a very family-orientated society, so it is a little bit like a city of villages,” he said.