UK cabinet minister Michael Gove was upstaged by a seemingly “grumpy” cat during questions from the Brexit committee via Zoom, interrupting his owner’s contribution and leading to messages of support for the disgruntled feline.
Gove was updating British MPs on the progress of Brexit negotiations between London and Brussels, via video call from his home on Monday afternoon. As the minister was attempting to respond to a question from the chair Hilary Benn on the timetable of negotiations, Gove’s cat – seemingly hellbent on silencing his owner – let out an almighty meow.
Footage of the comical incident was posted on social media by the Independent’s policy correspondent Jon Stone, who reported that questioning was interrupted by a “grumpy cat.”
It left the polarising figure of Gove struggling to keep a straight face and many on Twitter making the most of the Tory minister’s embarrassing moment. Messages of support flooded in for the feline, with one person joking: “In fairness, I’d also be grumpy if I was trapped with Michael Gove for weeks on end.”
Others sarcastically suggested that the cat was attempting to give a more honest answer on the state of Brexit trade talks than Gove.
When Gove did manage to get a word in, he insisted that the UK would publish its legal text for a proposed free trade agreement with the EU in “a matter of weeks.” The bloc’s Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has voiced his frustration at the slow progress to date, claiming that he wasn’t hearing any “whistling” from the UK side, just the “clock ticking.” The EU has already published its own proposal.
The transition period agreed with Brussels ends on December 31 – meaning a trade deal needs to be in place by then if the UK is to avoid moving onto World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.
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