LIZ Truss has sparked backlash after talks between the UK and Japan over a post- Brexit trade deal were stalled because she insisted on bringing Stilton cheese into the negotiations.

Both sides came close to an agreement in London last week, with the end of August said to be a possibility.

But the UK’s International Trade Secretary calling for Stilton cheese to be added to the final version of the deal to prove the agreement will better than the current arrangement between the EU and Japan.

According to the Financial Times, Truss said this deal would be a "symbolic win" for the UK, despite the fact only £102,000 out of the £18 million worth of blue cheese exported globally last year went to Japan.

The EU and Japan forged a deal last year, which would see the 29 per cent tariffs on hard cheeses phased out by the year 2033 but there will only be duty-free access by that year on an agreed tariff for blue-veined cheese, such as stilton.

Truss is passionate about British cheese’s place in international markets. In a bizarre speech to the Tory party conference in 2014, she said that Britain’s trade deficit in cheese was “a disgrace”.

The FT article also revealed that UK Government figures show that a “modelled” trade deal with Japan would only add 0.07% to Britain’s GDP in the long term, compared with the loss of 5 per cent of GDP growth associated with the UK leaving the EU single market and customs union.

Truss’s stance sparked fury on social media.

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