Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Theresa May didn't want to wear £995 leather trousers but was forced into it by aide, report claims

The Prime Minister was told to wear the chocolate-coloured Amanda Wakeley strides by her 'infuriating' former aide Fiona Hill, it is claimed

Saturday 15 July 2017 12:47 BST

Theresa May faced criticism for her expensive choice of trousers (BBC)

Theresa May didn't want to wear the £995 pair of designer trousers that sparked a PR disaster known as "Trousergate", but was talked into it by one of her senior aides, according to the Prime Minister's former spin doctor.

Ms May planned to wear her own clothes for a Sunday Times photoshoot at her Downing Street flat in November 2016, but was persuaded to get into the leather Amanda Wakeley trousers by her then joint chief of staff Fiona Hill, it is said.

The fashion-conscious Conservative's expensive choice of strides was criticised in Tory circles and attracted media attention.

Former education secretary Nicky Morgan commented: "I don't think I've ever spent that much on anything apart from my wedding dress."

The public fallout escalated as Ms Morgan was pictured carrying a £950 Mulberry Bayswater handbag and found herself barred from a meeting at 10 Downing Street following her critical remarks.

Journalists also raised questions about whether Ms May had used a discount card to buy the luxury chocolate-coloured trousers and whether she had officially declared them on the register of members' interests.

Ms May's former director of communications, Katie Perrior, said the "PR screw-up" could have been avoided if Ms May hadn't been ordered to wear the trousers by Ms Hill.

Theresa May says she cried on election night after losing her majority

She told The Times the Prime Minister wanted to wear her own clothes for the photoshoot, but was told to wear the outfit after Ms Hill begged Amanda Wakeley to send a "vanful of clothes" to Downing Street.

"I didn’t even like the bloody trousers – they were the wrong kind of brown, if you know what I mean," said Ms Perrior, who resigned from her post in April.

She claimed the PR disaster was indicative of the "grim" atmosphere within Ms May's inner circle in Downing Street, adding: "Working with Hill was infuriating."

The Prime Minister's two chiefs of staff, Nick Timothy and Ms Hill, lost their jobs in the wake of the botched election that saw the Conservatives squander a working majority in the Commons.

When Ms May first announced the election, Ms Perrior and spokeswoman Lizzie Loudon announced their departures amid claims of a bust-up in Downing Street.

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

Show all 6

1/6The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

Brexit

The big one. Theresa May has spoken publicly three times since declaring her intent to stand in the Tory Leadership race, and each time she has said, ‘Brexit means Brexit.’ It sounds resolute, but it is helpful to her that Brexit is a made up word with no real meaning. She has said there will be ‘no second referendum’ and no re-entry in to the EU via the back door. But she, like the Leave campaign of which she was not a member, has pointedly not said with any precision what she thinks Brexit means

Reuters

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

General election

This is very much one to keep off the to do list. She said last week there would be ‘no general election’ at this time of great instability. But there have already been calls for one from opposition parties. The Fixed Term Parliaments Act of 2010 makes it far more difficult to call a snap general election, a difficulty she will be in no rush to overcome. In the event of a victory for Leadsom, who was not popular with her own parliamentary colleagues, an election might have been required, but May has the overwhelming backing of the parliamentary party

Getty

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

HS2

Macbeth has been quoted far too much in recent weeks, but it will be up to May to decide whether, with regard to the new high speed train link between London, Birmingham, the East Midlands and the north, ‘returning were as tedious as go o’er.’ Billions have already been spent. But the £55bn it will cost, at a bare minimum, must now be considered against the grim reality of significantly diminished public finances in the short to medium term at least. It is not scheduled to be completed until 2033, by which point it is not completely unreasonable to imagine a massive, driverless car-led transport revolution having rendered it redundant

EPA

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

Heathrow expansion

Or indeed Gatwick expansion. Or Boris Island, though that option is seems as finished as the man himself. The decision on where to expand aviation capacity in the south east has been delayed to the point of becoming a national embarrassment. A final decision was due in autumn. Whatever is decided, there will be vast opprobrium

PA

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

Trident renewal

David Cameron indicated two days ago that there will be a Commons vote on renewing Britain’s nuclear deterrent on July 18th, by which point we now know, Ms May will be Prime Minister. The Labour Party is, to put it mildly, divided on the issue. This will be an early opportunity to maximise their embarrassment, and return to Tory business as usual

EPA

The 6 most important issues Theresa May needs to address

Scottish Independence

Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP are in no doubt that the Brexit vote provides the opportunity for a second independence referendum, in which they can emerge victorious. The Scottish Parliament at Holyrood has the authority to call a second referendum, but Ms May and the British Parliament are by no means automatically compelled to accept the result. She could argue it was settled in 2014

AFP/Getty

Ms Perrior has since contributed to scathing articles about the handling of the campaign, Ms May's chiefs of staff and in particular the U-turn over social care which has been blamed on Mr Timothy.

After the disastrous election result, ministers whose support Ms May needed demanded the Prime Minister get rid of her aides Mr Hill and Mr Timothy, who they blamed for mistakes and creating a toxic atmosphere.

While Mr Timothy is said to have been shut out since the result, insiders say the Prime Minister still takes advice from Ms Hill.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies