European Commission president Jean Claude Juncker has joked that Britain would be better off if he was prime minister.

Arriving at an informal meeting of the 27 other EU heads of government, Mr Juncker said Theresa May had not briefed him on the Chequers meeting of her Brexit “war cabinet” when ministers agreed a broad policy for the next stage of negotiations, on trade.

He then quipped: “I am not the British prime minister. It would be good for Britain if I was, but I’m not.”

Mr Juncker’s Commission, led by chief negotiator Michel Barnier, is responsible for coordinating the EU’s work on Britain’s withdrawal and conducting exit talks.

He has long been a bete noire for Brexiteers, and David Cameron unsuccessfully attempted to stop his nomination as Commission president in 2014.