Former prime minister Liz Truss has called The Daily Star’s viral “Lizzy Lettuce” stunt mocking the length of her time in Downing Street “puerile” and not funny.

Speaking at the News Xchange conference in Dublin on Monday Truss also dismissed much of British political coverage as “froth” that does not seriously engage with underlying issues.

But she said the irreverence of the British media was “a good thing, on the whole… although I have suffered personally from it”.