Boris Johnson condemns 'misogynistic' claims about Angela Rayner

Boris Johnson has shown support for Angela Rayner following claims the Labour deputy leader has sought to distract the Prime Minister provocatively in the Commons. Mr Johnson said he 'deplores' the 'misogyny' directed toward Ms Rayner by anonymous Conservative MPs in a widely-criticised newspaper article.

The Mail On Sunday's politics editor Glen Owen reports that Tory MPs claim Ms Rayner crosses and uncrosses her legs in Prime Minister's Questions 'to put Mr Johnson off his stride’. The Greater Manchester MP is then likened to Sharon Stone and her infamous scene in the 1992 film Basic Instinct.

An anonymous MP is quoted, who suggests Ms Rayner 'can't compete' with Boris Johnson's Oxford Union debate training, adding: "but she has other skills which he lacks." Despite their differences, Mr Johnson says, he has called out the comments publicly online.

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"As much as I disagree with @AngelaRayner on almost every political issue I respect her as a parliamentarian and deplore the misogyny directed at her anonymously today," the Prime Minister said on Twitter. Ms Rayner replied to the tweet, saying: "thank you."

However the Mirror's politics editor Pippa Crerar has pointed out that the exact same statement has also been tweeted from culture secretary Nadine Dorrie's Twitter account, making some social media users question the authenticity of the statement.

Pippa wrote alongside two screengrabs: "They could’ve at least changed a couple of words." One social media user responded: "A nice copy and paste job was it?"

Ms Rayner often sits next to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and opposite the Prime Minister during the weekly Commons clashes. She