David Mundell on softening his Brexit view, being sacked by the PM, coming out and meeting a 'very orange' Donald Trump

British politics can be a brutal business.

Within hours of being sacked by Boris Johnson from the Cabinet, David Mundell's belongings were outside the Commons office he had held as Scottish secretary since 2015.

Now the big grey crates sit, still unpacked, in his less-decorated office over the road in Westminster, which - as fate would have it - was occupied by Mr Johnson before he launched the successful leadership bid which propelled him to power in July and forced Mr Mundell and others out.

It's from here that the 57-year-old reflected on his tumultuous last few years with ITV News Political Correspondent Paul Brand for the Acting Prime Minister podcast.

In his first major broadcast interview since his exit from the government's top team, Mr Mundell reflected on the sacking, revealed his warning to Boris Johnson at their final meeting and looked back on making history by becoming the first openly gay Conservative MP to hold a Cabinet position.

David Mundell spoke to Paul Brand in his new Westminster office. Credit: ITV News

He also notably said he remains open to voting for a Brexit deal which gives Northern Ireland special status - despite previously saying it was a resigning matter for him.

Mr Mundell had even handed Theresa May his warning in writing last year during his tenure in Cabinet.

But speaking prior to Mr Johnson declaring a new Brexit deal has been done, he told Brand he would now "see what's on the table" rather than outright reject a deal which put Northern Ireland in a unique position.

The crates of David Mundell's belongings remain unopened in what used to be Boris Johnson's office. Credit: ITV News

Mr Mundell was also critical of the lack of LGBT diversity in Mr Johnson's Cabinet after he and Justine Greening left the Cabinet.

And in the wide-ranging interview, the MP for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale also delivered an entertaining anecdote on his brief meeting with Donald Trump in Scotland, which forged his abiding memory that the US president was "very orange" and sparked rumours that First Lady Melania Trump was an impostor.

Watch above or listen to the full Acting Prime Minister episode to also hear:

  • The stormy picture which he would hang above the Number 10 desk

  • Why he banned the term 'bar' to describe the supply of whisky in his office

  • The Twitter abuse that made him rethink his late-night media commitments

  • How coming out was not a political decision

  • His solution to Brexit after identifying the biggest mistakes he and others have made so far

  • How he would respond to calls for a second referendum on Scottish Independence if the SNP gained overwhelming support at an election

  • The Eagles song which sums up his approach to politics

  • Why he would only want to be prime minister in the past

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Acting Prime Minister offers politicians and public figures the keys to power then asks: 'What would you do now?' Credit: ITV News