Keir Starmer was facing questions on Wednesday night about whether he misled the public when he claimed Angela Rayner was the subject of a 'briefing war'.
The Prime Minister issued a staunch defence of his deputy on Monday, just hours after Downing Street revealed she was trying to lift a court order so she could speak publicly about the controversy over her tax affairs.
He told the BBC: 'Angela has had people briefing against her and talking her down over and over again. It's a mistake, by the way.'
Sir Keir suggested that attacks on Ms Rayner were fuelled by snobbery, saying: 'Angela came from a very humble background, battled all sorts of challenges along the way, and there she is proudly – and I'm proud of her – as our Deputy Prime Minister.'
His comments came after No 10 said she had applied to lift a court order which she said prevented her from speaking out.
