What the papers say: Theresa May hits back against Brussels

Theresa May’s missive to Brussels delivered on the steps of Downing Street had a simple message: keep out of our election. The PM’s speech was her most direct attack yet against the EU and showed that she was intent on living up to her moniker of being a ‘bloody difficult woman’. Her words might have gone down badly across the Channel, but they’ve been warmly welcomed in today’s newspapers:

‘The gloves are off,’ says the Daily Telegraph, which argues that recent events have shown to the Prime Minister that ‘the prospects of a smooth Brexit have gone’. The PM’s charged statement ‘marked a break from the recent British position’, the Telegraph argues, pointing out that May ‘has clearly sensed a change in the country’s mood’ in light of the disastrous Downing Street dinner – the details of which ended up splashed all over the European press. The EU’s ‘underhand’ approach – and its repeated inflation of Britain’s Brexit bill – paints a clear picture of ‘democracy, EU-style’, the Telegraph says.