A Home Office minister has refused to deny in Parliament that police have been trawling through journalists’ phone data in response to leaked diplomatic memos about US President Donald Trump.

Conservative MP David Davis (pictured) tabled an urgent question in the House of Commons today after the Metropolitan Police said publishing information from such a leak may be a “criminal matter”.

The Met launched a criminal investigation on Friday to find the source of private correspondence sent by British ambassador to the US Sir Kim Darroch in which he refers to Trump as “inept” and “insecure”.