Mrs Merkel is right.

Mrs May says “It's up to a woman to decide how to dress; it's not up to other people to tell a woman how to dress.  But obviously these issues are ones that are openly discussed and it's right we have discussions about issues like this.”   

Well, that is a typical Mrs May sentence if ever there was one.  It says nothing.   Vacuous.

On the first point, it’s simply not true that women, or men for that matter, can dress how they want to.   There are laws that forbid certain things.

On the second point, “these issues”, she is clearly out of step with her EU counterparts that she is so enthral with.  What’s happened in France with the burqa?  Banned.  Netherlands?  Banned.  Belgium? Banned.  Spain?  Banned.  Italy? Banned.  Austria?  Banned.  Denmark?  Banned.  Switzerland?  Banned.  Even Turkey?  Banned.   

Former French prime minister Manuel Valls called the burka “the enslavement of women”.  Strong words.

Even in Germany the parliament voted in favour of partial burqa ban with the Interior minister saying it will make "boundaries of our tolerance" clear.  Thomas de Maiziere, the German interior minister, argued that the ban was compatible with integration as debate continues over the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers in the country.  “Integration also means that we should make clear and impart our values and where the boundaries of our tolerance towards other cultures lie,” he said.   

Indeed, Mrs May’s good friend Angela Merkel announced her support for the move saying full-face veils were “not acceptable in Germany” and calling them to be banned “wherever it is legally possible”.   

If you watched BBC news last night, it was virtually inviting the police to have a world with Boris almost, but not quite, suggesting he may have broken the law.    

Which is all very odd.  What has he to apologise for?  He defended people's right to wear the burka which is more than what Mrs Merkel does.  She thinks hiding your face is not appropriate in a free liberal society that prides itself on openness.   

Mrs Merkel has got this one right Mrs May.