Twitter rages as Tory peer insists John Major's speech includes 'HELPFUL BREXIT HINTS'
A TORY peer sent Twitter into meltdown after she suggested John Major’s anti-Brexit speech offered “helpful hints”.
Baroness Wheatcroft: John Major offered helpful hints for EU
Baroness Wheatcroft said she hoped the government “had been listening” to the former prime minister, who accused Theresa May of setting “unreal” expectations for Britain’s EU divorce.
In his first public speech since Britain’s historic vote to Leave, the Europhile branded June’s referendum result as a “historic mistake”.
Remain-backing Sir John also personally criticised the prime minister as he told her to inject “a little more charm and a lot less cheap rhetoric” into her forthcoming Brexit talks.
Baroness Wheatcroft said John Major's speech was
What John Major was talking about was helpful hints
The former Conservative leader has since come under fire for his remarks, including from Brexiteer Iain Duncan Smith, who branded him “bitter and backwards”.
However, Baroness Wheatcroft jumped to defend her fellow Tory on Tuesday’s episode of Daily Politics.
She crowed: “I think what was important in what John Major said was the tone which we adopt in negotiations should be a lot more friendly and subtle than it has been.
Baroness Wheatcroft defended the former prime minister on the BBC's Daily Politics
“Talking about a ‘red, white and blue Brexit’ was never going to be helpful.
“We want to do a deal with Europe, we want them to be on our side and I think John Major was absolutely right.”
“What John Major was talking about was helpful hints for our forth coming negotiations and I hope that the government will be listening.”
Sir John Major criticised Brexit in speech.
@daily_politics What an arrogant women she is totally out of touch with the real world.
— David Sprason (@ruraloutback) February 28, 2017
The comments have promoted a fierce backlash on social media.
One angry Twitter user fumed: “What an arrogant women she is totally out of touch with the real world.”
Another raged: “House of Lords, close it down and make a hotel out of it and the fee's you charge you can put back into the economy”.
A third snapped: “Her points were lost. Wasn't Major PM when UK sold its soul to EU in Lisbon & Maastricht treaties without public vote then?”
Fabricant on Brexit: 'What do they want? Best of three?'
On Monday the unelected peer also claimed Brits deserved to have a vote on the final deal the prime minister gets with the EU.
Speaking on LBC, she said: “There should be a vote, put to the people, a referendum on the terms.
“That's not defying the will of the people, that's actually asking what is the will of the people."
The comments were rebuked by Conservative MP Michael Fabricant, who fired back: “I think what Patience is saying is she didn't like the first result, so she wants, as she says, another referendum.
"Perhaps we have the best the three? That's absolute nonsense.”