A bonkers, vain, attention-seeking, maverick, principled and courageous hero. The adjectives being bandied around anonymously on Thursday about the 59-year-old former shadow home secretary reflect David Davis’s ability to polarise opinion.

A former-SAS man with a thrice-broken nose, Mr Davis has built a reputation as a no-nonsense eurosceptic Thatcherite, whose blunt but highly articulate manner has helped build a solid support base among the Tory grassroots. Runner-up to David Cameron in the 2005 leadership election, Mr Davis had until Thursday proved a loyal and supportive colleague to his erstwhile rival.