Twenty tweets in less than 20 days to show how MP Steve Barclay sees himself in the unfolding drama of Brexit

MP Steve Barclay – who retained his cabinet post at Brexit Secretary after Boris Johnson became prime minister – told Parliament yesterday that a new law extending the deadline for Brexit “will be legislation that will act as purgatory and endless delay”.

Cambs Times: MP Steve Barclay has endured one of the busiest few weeks of his Parliamentarian career. We viewed his recent work as Brexit Secretary through his on line presence, gathering up 20 tweets from recent weeks to demonstrate his workload and thoughts. Picture; STEVE BARCLAY (Twitter) MP Steve Barclay has endured one of the busiest few weeks of his Parliamentarian career. We viewed his recent work as Brexit Secretary through his on line presence, gathering up 20 tweets from recent weeks to demonstrate his workload and thoughts. Picture; STEVE BARCLAY (Twitter) (Image: Archant)

The MP for NE Cambs - that gave him at constituency level a clear mandate for leaving the EU - said the Government was committed to leaving the European Union on October 31 "whatever the circumstances.

"We would prefer to leave with a deal, but to achieve that the EU must be willing to reopen the previous withdrawal agreement."

His role in the political drama now being played out in Westminster comes against a backdrop of his criss crossing Europe in recent weeks trying to ensure that necessary arrangements for a no deal are in place as well as continuing the process of finding a solution to stop that happening.

Supporting the Government's position he said: "A significant amount of work has gone on, but we will not fall into the trap that befell the previous Government".

That, he said, was where the EU Commission "has an absolutist, all-weather, all-insurance position and then asks for deals on the basis of creative flexibility, and against that test then dismiss it as magical thinking.

"We need to have detailed discussions, but they must be done in the right way, which is what we are doing."

On the basis that a week is a long time in politics - a quote usually attributed to Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson - we charted Mr Barclay's thoughts on Brexit through his busy Twitter site.

The minister - now with nearly 24, 000 followers on the popular social media outlet - has been ablaze with photos and tweets from him in recent days.