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Live updates: Leadsom motherhood row

Andrea Leadsom has appeared to suggest being a mother makes her a better choice for prime minister than Theresa May, who has no children.

Latest updates:

  • The comments, made in an interview with The Times, have sparked a backlash
  • Leadsom said she was "disgusted" and accused the newspaper of "gutter journalism"
  • The Times has defended its story, releasing an audio recording and transcript
  • A Tory backbencher told ITV News that Leadsom should withdraw from leadership race
  • Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said Leadsom's 'personal criticism' was 'unfair and wrong'
  • Leadsom said she has apologised to Theresa May
View all 19 updates ›

May supporter: Move on from 'motherhood' remarks

Tory MP supporters for rival leadership candidates Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom have responded to Leadsom's apology over remarks she made about motherhood, with a backer for May telling GMB it is "time to move on."

Grant Shapps, who is supporting May's bid to be the new prime minister, said that he doubted the Home Secretary "has spent very much time at all" on Leadsom's comments and said that "we shouldn't either."

Interviews are very easy to says something wrong, to slip up... what I'm really interested in is what plans each of the candidates have got to take this country forward.

– Grant Shapps

John Redwood defended Leadsom's comments to The Times, saying that the junior energy minister had been "drawn onto this subject" of motherhood by the paper's journalist, Rachel Sylvester.

She's a fresh new face who's going to be really exciting.

– John Redwood
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Live updates: Leadsom motherhood row

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