Leadsom delivers a parting shot at Bercow

Andrea Leadsom has just given a rather long and very comprehensive personal statement in the Commons following her sacking in last month’s reshuffle. She took no parting shots at Boris Johnson at all, preferring instead to focus any anger on former Speaker John Bercow, with whom she had a very long-running feud.

Someone with very little knowledge of what has happened in Westminster in the past few years might have been forgiven for thinking that Bercow was the one responsible for her leaving government, rather than the Prime Minister. 

She denied reports that she had once told George Osborne to ‘eff off’, and instead suggested that the only person she would use that language towards would be the previous Speaker. She also talked about the satisfaction she felt when she demanded Bercow apologise for calling her a ‘stupid woman’.