Gaffe-prone David Davis furiously backtracks after saying Brexit deal on Irish border is not 'legally enforceable'
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David Davis today claimed he was 'misquoted' in reports that he had suggested Theresa May's Brexit deal on the Irish border was not 'legally enforceable', which he was not.
Under the terms of the deal, Britain's economy will remain in 'regulatory alignment' with Brussels, in order to prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
The Brexit Secretary yesterday told the BBC the agreement was "a statement of intent more than anything else. Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing."
His words sparked fury in Ireland, with political figures branding the statement "bizarre."
Irish Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney, took to Twitter to stress the deal was "a clear and positive commitment."
(Image: PA)
Today Davis furiously backtracked on his statement - claiming he had been misquoted in media coverage of his comments and insisting he meant that a "statement of intent" was more binding than a mere legal requirement.
He told LBC Radio's Nick Ferrari: "I said ‘much more than legally enforceable’. That sounds like a slight misquote.
"It’s very plain. It’s more than legally enforceable. In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesn’t happen, we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border within Northern Ireland and Ireland.
"That is the point - I was making the point that it was much more than what was in the treaty, it’s what we want to do anyway."
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Mr Davis also said Chancellor Philip Hammond had "slightly misspoken" when he said Britain would pay the £39 billion divorce fee even if Britain left the EU without a deal.
He said: "You'll have to ask him. I don't know what the context of the question was. The straightforward fact is that this whole payment is contingent on a deal being agreed.
And he revealed in the interview that orange juice is his "Kryptonite".
(Image: REX/Shutterstock)
Asked if he had allowed himself a glass of champagne when the deal had been agreed on Friday morning, he said: "I didn't. I'm told there was champagne at the breakfast, I didn't see it.
"And you probably don't know, I can't drink orange juice, it's poison to me. It's like my Kryptonite. I sat there with this glass of orange juice in front of me and nothing to drink except these incredibly strong coffees they serve."
Finally he admitted he doesn't "need to be very clever" to do his job.
He told Ferrari: "What are the requirements of my job? I don't need to be very clever. I don't have to know that much, I just have to be calm."