Peter Mandelson has expressed his delight at being described by the Daily Mail as a Brexit ‘saboteur’ who needed to be ‘crushed’.
The former Labour grandee told BBC Newsnight he “couldn’t be more pleased” with the newspaper’s veiled threat over his efforts to oppose the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with the Daily Mail calling me a saboteur and saying I had to be crushed,” Lord Mandelson said.
”The other day The Sun newspaper devoted a leader [column] to denouncing my treachery and my lack of patriotism,” he added with apparent glee.
Watch the clip, above.
Last week, the Mail used the description of ‘saboteurs’ for those attempting to undermine the process of Brexit.
Its front page headline ‘Crush The Saboteurs’ was carried across a picture of Prime Minister Theresa May.
The splash sent shudders through social media. May later distanced herself from the tone taken by the paper.
During his Newsnight interview, Mandelson explained his efforts to coordinate a cross-party group to advise voters which candidates in June’s election are supporters of a ‘hard’ Brexit - and those who oppose Brexit entirely.
The movement, named Open Britain, is “against giving Theresa May the blank cheque she’s looking for,” he said.
[SEE ALSO: Open Britain Exposes All The Times Brexiters Promised We Wouldn’t Leave The Single Market]
“They will be different people from different parties,” he said. “We’re not telling people how to vote... if I had a vote, I would be voting for the Labour candidate.”
But when asked what the Labour Party’s position on Brexit was, Mandelson quipped: “Well, search me.”