POLITICAL COLUMN JUNE 7

And one of her particular weak points, which may have been a factor in the Tories' disappointing showing at the general election in June last year after being embarrassingly tripped up in that manifesto fiasco, is that she isn't very good at not answering either.

Jeremy Corbyn gave her some more practice at not answering with his probing of the Government's Brexit position.

It is not an approach which can be recommended to Shropshire's students who are doing exams at the moment. However, if you don't have an answer to one question, you may as well answer a different question that is more to your liking.

That's the May way.

Last month, the Labour leader said, the Brexit Secretary (David Davis) "promised, and I quote, a detailed, ambitious, and precise White Paper on the Government's negotiating position.' Will it be published in advance of the EU withdrawal debate next week?"

Yes, said Mrs May, she and the Brexit Secretary agreed they wanted to publish a White Paper which went into more detail and that when they published it they would be able to negotiate on the basis that it was an ambitious offer and the basis for an ambitious trade deal and security partnership.

Mr Corbyn had another go. Would it be published ahead of the crucial June EU summit and would there be an opportunity to debate it in the House before the summit?

She wasn't falling for that. This time her response was to ask him a question instead. Would he stand up and rule out a second referendum?

"The last time I looked at the order paper it said Prime Minister's Question Time," said Mr Corbyn.

He tried a few other tacks. And you know what, she still wasn't going to tell him. The May flannel factory was in full working order.

"When it comes to Brexit this Government has delivered more delays and more cancellations that Northern Rail," he said from his script.

The SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford's question started: "Supermarkets running out of food within days..."

This grave prospect had an immediate effect on some MPs. They laughed. It was another Brexit question by the way.

Chris Davies (Conservative, Brecon and Radnorshire) said the Lord v Commons pigeon race had been revived after 90 years, with sponsorship money going to Combat Stress. He invited the Prime Minister to sponsor a pigeon. She readily agreed.

It will be interesting to see in which direction it flies.