“Why is it leaking from its eyes?” Theresa May asked today on finally meeting a Grenfell Tower survivor.

Addressing a hospital patient directly, the Prime Minister said: “It will keep its distance and it will stop leaking.

“I said it will stop leaking.

“Stop leaking!

“It will know that if there are any lessons to be learned from whatever it is that has happened to it, they will be.

“But it will also receive and accept the obvious implication that there may be nothing to learn from this, that it may just be the acceptable price of austerity.

“It will nod now in acknowledgement.”

Raising a hand as the man began to reply, Mrs May said: “It is not expected to reply.”

Ending the 30-second interaction, she added: “It will know that I must leave now, quickly, and via an emergency exit, due to the very real security concern that it may want to kill me.”