Priti Patel: I would have told the EU to sod off

After Priti Patel had to resign as International Development Secretary over unofficial meetings with Israelis ministers, the MP promised to continue to be ‘a strong voice for Witham and Britain’. At tonight’s Spectator panel discussion ‘What is the future of the Tory party?’ at the Emmanuel Centre, she certainly seemed intent on doing the latter.

Now able to speak freely from the backbench, Patel pulled no punches. The Brexiteer MP appeared to criticise Theresa May’s Brexit strategy – claiming the government lacked ‘conviction and clarity in terms of our end state’. And she did not stop there. As well as claiming the UK had been ‘ill-equipped’ in terms of preparations for the negotiations, she said it was a ‘failing’ that May has not set out a full vision for Britain post-Brexit,

As for the divorce bill (which is currently thought to be at around £40bn), the Conservative MP told the audience she would have told the EU to ‘sod off’ with their excessive financial demands.