Former GMTV host Fiona Phillips has waded into the row between Lorraine Kelly and Esther McVey – accusing the Tory leader hopeful of LYING.

A war of words has broke out between former breakfast show hosts Kelly and McVey after a cringeworthy segment on the Lorraine show in which the presenter appeared to snub the MP.

McVey later explained Kelly’s cold reaction was because she was “promoted to be partnering with Eamonn Holmes” above her.

Writing for the Mirror , Fiona claimed that her version of events wasn’t true.

She said: “My mum told me at a very young age: ‘don’t bother telling untruths because you’ll always get found out’.

"I wonder if Tory Leadership hopeful, Esther McVey was told that as a child?

"Following an embarrassing exchange during an interview on Monday’s Good Morning Britain, Esther was left squirming when Piers Morgan asked Lorraine Kelly for her memories of working with the Tory Leadership hopeful during a short stint at GMTV in 1999.

(Image: Nine Lives Media) (Image: Alamy)

"Lorraine looked as though she’d sniffed something foul, and replied ‘I don’t remember’.

"Strange that, seeing as Esther reckons she’d been so good at her job at the breakfast station that she “was promoted to be partnering with Eamonn Holmes”.

"How strange because she didn’t have a job at GMTV until she covered my three month maternity in 1999.

"How could she have been ‘promoted’, then, from a job she’d never held in the first place? Hmmmm.”

In another interview, Fiona went into further detail.

(Image: ITV)

She told Mail Online : "Esther said that she had been promoted. But that is an absolute lie. She was only on there because she was covering my maternity leave.

"During which I was asked several times by colleagues pleading to know when I was coming back. Esther was never presenting there permanently. She was at Channel Five I think at the time and she was jobbing, just trying to get work.

"But I don't know because I wasn't there. She said she had been promoted. But she wasn't even there to be promoted. You don't embellish your CV."

(Image: Press Association) (Image: PA)

Earlier Kelly said she was “baffled” by McVey’s claim that she was promoted above her and added that she strongly disagrees with her politics on LGBT rights.

She said: “No, there is no battle. I’m baffled by that though because I had my own show from 1992 and I don’t actually think she joined until five years later.”

Asked if she approves of McVey’s politics, she said: “Yesterday, Piers, I will be honest with you, I just got sick to the back teeth of the whole toxic political atmosphere.

"I strongly disagree with her on LGBT rights and I just felt like I’ve had enough of this, we’ve had two-and-a-half years of going round in circles over Brexit and now we’ve got people at each other’s throats and its got to stop.”