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James Cleverly spars with the BBC

James Cleverly (Credit: Getty images)

Ding, ding, ding! It seems that James Cleverly took Downing Street’s instructions to get in some much-needed R&R over the holidays very seriously indeed. The Home Secretary was raring to go on this morning’s broadcast round, getting into several spats with the host of Radio 4’s Today programme, Mishal Husain.

Cleverly was on air to discuss the Home Office’s claim that the asylum backlog had been cleared. He argued that ‘every single [legacy claim] has been processed’ but said it was ‘impossible to say’ how long it would take to clear the remaining cases, asserting that the aim is to get the overall number of applications coming down.

Husain then noted that the immigration services’ union expected the number of applications to rise this year, before trying to move on to her next question. Cleverly, though was having none of it.

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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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