During a recent Q&A session with the Press Association the four Labour leadership candidates were asked who their favourite Conservative MP was. These are the answers they gave.
Andy Burnham: John Bercow
John Bercow (PA)
“John Bercow, but I'm not sure he still counts does he? I have always got on very well with Simon Burns. We've always had quite a good, friendly relationship. We were on the health select committee years ago and then when he was a health minister and I was challenging him, we managed to keep it friendly and we have always had a good laugh together.”
Jeremy Corbyn: David Davis
David Davis (Getty)
“Probably David Davis because he is thoughtful, libertarian, open to ideas. I had a fascinating visit to Washington with him when we were lobbying for the release of the last British detainee in Guantanamo Bay Shaker Aamer.
“We disagreed on political philosophy, we disagreed on most things, but we respected each others commitment to liberty and justice.”
Yvette Cooper: Jane Ellison
Jane Ellison (Getty)
“Probably Jane Ellison because I did quite a bit of work with her on preventing the attempt to have back-door changes to the abortion laws that would have caused all sorts of problems for families.”
Liz Kendall: Ken Clarke
Ken Clarke (PA)
“I like listening to Ken Clarke. He has had guts in taking his own party on on Europe - and I am a massive pro-European - and I think he stuck with what he believed in through thick and thin even when many have opposed him.
“That outward-looking vision of a Britain that engages with the rest of the world and has a strong role in Europe, I really admire him for that.”
