I’m half bulimic ... I eat a lot but don’t throw up, Minister tells his baffled guests

The ex-CBI chief, formerly Sir Digby Jones, told Middle Eastern entrepreneurs in an after-lunch speech: "I'm half a bulimic – I eat a lot but I don't throw up."

He continued: "We don't care what colour you are, we don't care if we can't pronounce your names and we don't care where your money comes from. We just want you to invest in our country."

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Lord Jones then baffled his audience by saying: "I'm a Goat, not a professional politician, so when I go I won't be shunted off to Defra."

One guest at the lunch at London's Café Royal on Wednesday said: "It was all rather extraordinary.

"Lord Jones arrived rather late and some people had gone.

"He spoke with great vigour but there were some very puzzled looks when he started talking about people's colour and not being able pronounce Arab names.

"No one knew what to make of his comments about goats, bulimia and throwing up.

"I didn't see him eat anything. It was very insensitive and embarrassing."

One of the reasons guests were mystified was Lord Jones's use of two Whitehall acronyms.

Goat is the name given to people like the peer, recruited from outside Whitehall in Mr Brown's "Government of all the talents".

Defra is the Department of Farming, Environment and Rural Affairs, regarded as a Ministerial cul-de-sac.

Invitations to the lunch were sent to senior Arab businessmen and diplomats including Dr Alia Hatoug-Bouran, ambassador of Jordan; Yigit Alpogan, ambassador of Turkey; Hussain Ali Abdullatif, ambassador of Oman; Hamida Mrabet Labidi, ambassador of Tunisia; and Shaikh Khalifa Al Khalifa, ambassador of Bahrain.

Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Lord Oakeshott said: "Lord Jones of bad jokes must remember he is a Minister. Poking fun at an investor's colour, name or business background can damage Britain's economy."

A spokesman for Lord Jones said: "He was trying to make the point that they were all welcome in Britain, that they could make good money here and make Britain greater.

"What he meant when he talked about Goats was that they did not seek promotion."

Explaining Lord Jones' late arrival, the spokesman added: "He agreed with the Middle East Association that he would miss lunch, make a speech and leave by three.

"He went to a lot of effort to be there and had to interrupt a ministerial tour of the South East. He did not have a drink at the lunch or at any ministerial event that day."

The spokesman could not explain why Lord Jones referred to bulimia and throwing up.

The Government also took the unusual step of issuing a statement on behalf of Jason Peers, chairman of the Middle East Association in the Gulf, in defence of Lord Jones.

"His efforts are highly appreciated by the MEA and its members," said Mr Peers, who was at the lunch.

Lord Jones has rarely been out of the headlines since he became a Minister last year. He refused to join the Labour Party and union leaders protested at giving a ministerial post to man who had opposed the minimum wage.

Within days, it emerged he had held talks with David Cameron earlier last year on the possibility of standing as Tory candidate in the London mayoral contest.

Lord Jones also had talks about becoming a Tory MP when Michael Howard was Conservative leader.