PRITI Patel has been accused of being distracted by the “chaos of internal Tory fighting” after she pulled out of being grilled by MPs of her controversial plans to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.

The Commons Home Affairs Committee was due to quiz Ms Patel on Wednesday morning but she cancelled her attendance late on Tuesday afternoon.

SNP committee member Stuart McDonald said on Twitter that Ms Patel sent an email shortly before 5pm to cancel because of “recent changes in government”.

She was due to attend alongside her permanent and second permanent secretaries Matthew Rycroft and Tricia Hayes.

The committee said in a tweet: “This morning at 10.00am we were due to be questioning the Home Secretary, Priti Patel. She has declined to attend our session.”

Mr McDonald said: “Once again we are seeing the chaos of internal Tory fighting get in the way of day to day governance - and impact ordinary lives - as a Cabinet Secretary uses it as an excuse to avoid facing scrutiny over her policies.

“We have people across the UK waiting too long for passports, for Windrush compensation and for asylum claims, as well as people still in detention pending removal to Rwanda - all of which Priti Patel is responsible for and all of which she was due to be questioned on. Now those awaiting answers will have to wait even longer.

“Just last week, the Home Secretary said she had to be ‘entirely focused on the business of government and our national security’. It seems she has now changed her mind.

“The ministerial code makes clear ministers have a duty to Parliament to be held to account for the policies and actions of their departments - yet in the space of two weeks we have had two Cabinet Secretaries pull out of giving evidence to Committees just hours before they were due to attend.

“This Westminster government is broken and is failing people across these isles - but Scotland has an escape route with independence and it is crucial we take it.”

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper accused the UK Government of being in “total chaos” and asked: “What on Earth is going on?

“Why has Priti Patel refused at the last minute to go to the Commons Home Affairs Committee so MPs can ask her about passport delays, asylum delays, rising crime, falling prosecutions, record low rape charges, record high fraud and more?”

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael MP said: “If Priti Patel is so afraid to answer for her disastrous policies, maybe it’s time she dropped them.

“Conservative ministers are clearly far too engrossed in political infighting to do their jobs. The British people deserve better.

“Priti Patel must come before Parliament to answer for her record now, or make way for someone who will.”