Angela Merkel is said to be bemused by the prime minister’s negotiating tactics

Angela Merkel had journalists “laughing uproariously” about Theresa May and Brexit, according to an account of a secret Davos briefing.

The German chancellor reportedly “poked fun” at the prime minister by relaying a typical conversation to illustrate how Mrs May would not be drawn on what Britain wanted from the EU. Mrs Merkel held a background briefing with a small group of selected journalists at the annual World Economic Forum on the understanding that she was not to be quoted. The report is disputed in Berlin.

“Angela Merkel naughtily poked fun at Theresa May . . . according to those there,” Robert Peston, the political editor of ITV news, wrote on Facebook. He was not present at the briefing.

“Merkel said that when she asks