They're at it again.

The English media has repeatedly struck an anti-Irish tone since 2016's Brexit referendum, particularly publications like The Spectator, The Sun and The Daily Mail. Indeed, so much so that an open letter was penned by Ireland's ambassador the UK Adrian O'Neill, chastising them for their approach to Anglo-Irish issues. In particular, Leo Varadkar has been called a "dope" by The Sun, who also told him to "shut your gob." Now, it's the Mail's turn to swing for the Fine Gael leader. Today, Mail columnist Richard Littlejohn published an article in which he gives Leo Varadkar a mocking nickname reminiscent of a Roald Dahl character, and in especially poor taste given Varadkar's ethnic minority status. Littlejohn writes: "I'm also led to believe that Steve Barclay, who is staying on as Brexit Secretary, has been to Dublin and read the riot act to pipsqueak Irish Prime Minister Lenny Verruca, reminding him on which side of his bread he'll find the Kerrygold.

"As a consequence, Verruca is coming under serious pressure at home to stop playing silly beggars on the so-called backstop."

Varadkar is a lot of things, though the word pipsqueak doesn't seem to fit, given his physical stature and well-known fitness. Similarly, it is fair to say almost the entire population of Ireland supports Varadkar's stance (which is really the EU's stance) on the backstop: that it is a fundamental necessity for any possible withdrawal agreement. In the column, Littlejohn also calls Johnson "a supreme political showman," "larger than life" and "barnstorming." So... maybe take this guy's judgment with a pinch of salt.