"You can't butter me up": Anne Widdecombe's response to Tory offers to stand down

16 November 2019, 13:37 | Updated: 16 November 2019, 13:43

Anne Widdecombe revealed a senior person from 10 Downing Street called her to offer her a job in the government's Brexit negotiating team if she stood down as a Brexit Party candidate.

Nigel Farage's party will not be putting candidates up in Conservative-held seats, but will be going for Labour-held marginals in Leave-voting areas.

Many Conservatives are urging the Brexit Party candidates to stand down - and Ms Widdecombe revealed she was forced to reject an offer of a major job after the election.

She said: "I received a call from Number 10 and I was offered 'a role in the negotiations' if I stood down.

"No offer could ever be made to anybody without it being sanctioned. You can't have individuals going off on their own and offering things.

"I told them, you can't flatter me and butter me up now.

"The person made a misjudgement. The person who sanctioned the offer made a misjudgement. If I was in a senior position and Number 10 - and this person was senior - and someone suggested ringing up Anne Widdecombe to make her an offer, I'd have said 'Don't do it'. It's a massive loss of judgement."

It's a claim that has been rejected by the Conservative Party, but Ms Widdecombe insisted: "They're actually denying it! I think somebody wants to put a microphone under Boris's nose and say to him 'Are you saying Anne Widdecombe's telling lies?'

"Because I would swear on the good book to what happened and yet Boris is denying it."