Boris Johnson today battled to steady Tory nerves after a torrent of blunders swept his election campaign off track.
The Prime Minister left No 10 for a final audience with the Queen this morning, before standing outside 10 Downing Street to announce the start of his bid for a mandate from the people.
But the day began with the Conservative Party chairman James Cleverly having to apologise for gaffes made by senior colleagues and he was berated on TV when he defended his staff who doctored a video of Labour opponent Sir Keir Starmer.
The storm of controversies included Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg offending the grieving former residents of Grenfell Tower; Tory Andrew Bridgen making a grovelling apology on the same issue; Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns has resigned after being accused of protecting a Conservative candidate accused by a judge of sabotaging a rape trial; another candidate who said poor people should be put down; and Defence Minister Johnny Mercer attacking his own party over the fake video row.
Mr Johnson set off for Buckingham Palace at about 10am and was greeted by the Queen’s Equerry Major Nana Kofi Twumasi-Ankrah and her private secretary Edward Young and ushered inside to the Queen’s private apartment.
He was then due to return to No 10 before symbolically leaving the Westminster bubble behind for a rally this evening in the West Midlands.
Morgan repeatedly accused the Conservatives of peddling fake news and a lie with the video.
Mr Cleverly sought to justify it by insisting that the Tories had also put out the original Sir Keir interview on GMB, as well as their version, which he argued was clipped rather than doctored. But Mr Morgan refused to accept this, saying: You are defending fake news.
Later on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Cleverly tried to justify the Sir Keir clip by saying it was a lighthearted satirical video on Labour’s Brexit position.