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A Brexit Party MEP was left embarrassed today when he asked a fellow British MEP what experience she had in economics - only to be told in fact she is a professor of the subject.

Green Party MEP for the South West Molly Scott Cato drew laughter and applause as she pointed out to Robert Rowland, the Brexit Party MEP for the South East, that she in fact is a professor of economics.

Mr Rowland asked in the EU Parliament today: "I'd just like to ask Ms Scott Cato what empirical proof she has that the end of the transition period when we will be leaving the EU hopefully on a Canada-Plus style trade deal, will result in a cliff edge, when as far as I am aware she does not have any degree in economics or maybe she has some business experience that will give some empirical proof that that will be the case.

"So I was wondering whether you could answer that question why you are so certain that the UK wil suffer as a result?"

MEP Ms Scott Cato, who was born in Stroud, replied: "Obviously you haven't been paying much attention to my CV, because I was and I remain a professor of economics."

This was greeted by laughter and applause in the Parliament.

She added: "I also have expertise in trade policy and have been studying the trade negotiations from the beginning. I rely on the other expertise of other trade experts, all of whom have said it takes much longer than the time available to negotiate a treaty and the likelihood is if we go ahead with Boris Johnson's deal we will end up in exactly the same crisis facing a no deal Brexit at the end of 2020."

Mairead McGuinness, the First Vice-President of the European Parliament, concluded: "I think Mr Rowland stands corrected."

Ms Scott Cato was at the European Parliament for a plenary session in Strasbourg, France.

From 2001 to 2012 she was senior lecturer and reader in green economics at the University of Wales in Cardiff, and then from 2012 she became Professor of Strategy and Sustainability at the University of Roehampton, as well as having published books on green economics.

Ms Scott Cato is also standing as a Green Party candidate in the General Election for Stroud, alongside Siobhan Baillie for Conservatives, David Drew for Labour, Glenville Gogerly for the Libertarian Party and Desi Latimer for the Brexit Party.