On another occasion, Ms Mordaunt had refused to give evidence to Northern Ireland’s select committee on trade policy in the province in May because she said officials were better placed to answer. Just last week Ms Mordaunt had refused to answer for her part in a debate on whaling and dolphin hunting in the Faroe Islands. Andrew Griffiths, a new minister who was in the department only hours after the reshuffle, intervened. Ms Mordaunt is said to rarely explain why she is absent from the department. One Whitehall insider described her as a “Walter Mitty character”. On Friday night, a source in Ms Mordaunt’s campaign defended her ministerial record: “Penny has always been a dedicated and hard-working minister throughout her career and in every department she has worked in Whitehall. “It is a testament to her work ethic, dedication and approach that she has so many colleagues rooting for her and supporting her for leadership. “Penny was honored to serve in International Development, Trade and as Director General of Payments as well as the country’s first female Secretary of Defense.”
