Just days after causing controversy during a visit to Wales it has been revealed that Katie Hopkins is on the verge of bankruptcy.

The controversial commentator has been forced to apply for an IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) to manage her crippling debts.

The move comes after she lost a libel case to writer and campaigner Jack Monroe.

The court case saw her having to pay £24,000 in damages after a judge ruled she'd caused "serious harm" to Jack's reputation with a tweet she posted in May 2015.

But the court case, which ended in March 2017 also landed her with a bill of £107,000 in costs that Hopkins was instructed to pay within 28 days.

What is an IVA? An individual voluntary arrangement - known as an IVA - is a formal and legally binding agreement between you and your creditors to pay back your debts over a period of time, Citizens Advice says. It is approved by the court and creditors must agree to abide by its terms. Usually the applicant will repay a certain amount each month for a period of a few years. An IVA is a type of insolvency but is different from bankruptcy. It can only be set up by a qualified professional, known as an insolvency practitioner, who will deal with creditors throughout the term of the IVA. However, the practitioner will charge a fee to manage the IVA, which tends to cost around £5,000. If the applicant does not have enough money to pay off their full debt, the rest can be written off. But if the creditors refuse to accept less payment, the IVA may fail and the applicant can be made bankrupt.

She had written: "@MsJackMonroe scrawled on any memorials recently? Vandalised the memory of those who fought for your freedom. Grandma got any more medals?"

Hopkins' tweet, Jack said, implied she had either vandalised a war memorial or "condoned or approved" of the criminal damage to the memorial - something that was clearly untrue as Katie had confused Jack with another campaigner.

Jack asked Hopkins to apologise on Twitter, but the far-rightwinger refused - resulting in Jack consulting a legal team and filing a complaint of defamation against her.

Hopkins put her luxury £1million Exeter mansion on the market in February this year, selling it for £950,000 within three weeks.

Taking to Twitter to announce the news of Hopkins' IVA, Jack wrote: "I can confirm today that following that landmark libel case, Katie Hopkins has entered into an IVA to avoid bankruptcy.

"I knew for a while but could not say anything for legal reasons. The arbitrary defender of free speech didn't want anyone to know, ironically..."

She went on: "I have been paid in full, but many of her creditors, including my lawyer, will not be paid what they are owed. For the want of an apology, a house, a job, a column, a radio show, and now financial solvency, were lost. It's all very sad, actually.

Katie Hopkins confronted in Cardiff city centre

"I'm not cruel nor celebrating - that case cost me 18 months of sanity and work, and I think neither of us wanted it to turn out this way. (I can recommend an excellent budget cookery book or three, for getting back on your feet, though)."

Hopkins is yet to respond to Jack's tweets publicly, and her rep has not responded to Mirror Online's request for comment.

Last week Hopkins faced a furious backlash for posting a picture of pupils in Newport without permission.

She said she had visited Newport High School to hear their "frank views on the standard of education in Wales" - but one parent said she made the children "look like hooligans".

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Taking to Twitter, Hopkins has also appealed to Welsh parents to get in touch about home-schooling in Ceredigion.