Jennifer Arcuri claims Boris Johnson was angry when he became foreign secretary because he could no longer visit her home

Prime minister's 'friend' says it is always the woman who is criticised 'when you have an affair with an older man'

Jennifer Arcuri says Boris Johnson was “pissed [off]” when he was made foreign secretary because tougher security meant he could not visit her home.

In a frank interview, the model-turned-entrepreneur says their relationship continued after he stepped down as mayor of London and became a cabinet minister – and that they were in touch as recently as July.

Ms Arcuri also comes closer than before to confirming a sexual relationship, saying it is always the woman who is criticised “when you have an affair with an older man”.

Referring to Mr Johnson’s promotion, in July 2016, she said: “He was pissed [off] when he became foreign secretary.

“He could not come to see me because he was followed everywhere [by his security detail]. I was like, 'Just tell them to wait outside. Stop making it seem like I'm some bit. Tell them I am a legitimate businesswoman.”

The revelation that the relationship continued until 2016 is significant because the prime minister has to provide a timeline of his contact with Ms Arcuri.

An inquiry into whether rules were broken because it amounted to a conflict of interest – after she received £126,000 of public money – appears to have been delayed until after the general election, prompting anger.

Ms Arcuri, 34, speaking to The Times, said the pair would recite Shakespeare's Sonnet 29, together “like a weird sense of foreplay”. It begins: “When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes.”

She revealed she visited Mr Johnson's family home while he was married to his ex-wife, Marina Wheeler, saying: “I admire Marina. I don't know how she put up with it for as long as she did.

“But from my understanding they were two separate people living in a house. Whatever was between them had long gone and it wasn't because of me.

“It wasn't that I was putting him in a position where it's either me or her, because I recognised he had a family, a life.”

The pair met in 2011, when Ms Arcuri says she joked with him that David Cameron, then prime minister, was stealing a march by making technology announcements affecting London.

“I didn't know the extent of the competitiveness between a boy named Boris and a boy named Dave,” she told The Times.

When, in 2012, Mr Johnson asked how they could keep in touch, Ms Arcuri says she said: “Why don't you just call me?" He later sent her a text saying, “Boris calling Jennifer.”

She said: “A friend said, 'You can't have Boris on your phone. Call him Alex the Great.' I didn't even know then his name was Alexander.”

During their first encounter alone, in a hotel bar, he asked her: “Were you a model? You are absolutely beautiful. I can see you being a model and actress.”

She said: "He had complimented me but it was not sleazy in any way,” adding: “I knew where he was going with wanting to pursue me. I am not stupid.

“People had mentioned he wants to sleep with you and I said, 'No, he doesn't. He is just so enthralled with my mind.'”