There was "powerful evidence" that the account given by former government chief whip Andrew Mitchell of the "Plebgate" affair was true, the High Court has heard.

Mr Mitchell's QC James Price told Mr Justice Mitting that the 58-year-old MP for Sutton Coldfield gave a clear account of his altercation with Pc Toby Rowland the day after the incident, which he had stuck to ever since.

He had stood his ground in the teeth of mounting evidence from police officers, which would have caused people less confident in the truth of their account to back-track, said counsel in his closing speech.

Mr Mitchell has sued News Group Newspapers (NGN) over a September 2012 story in The Sun which he said meant he was guilty of launching a grossly offensive and arrogant attack at Downing Street police officers, branding them "f****** plebs."

NGN based its report, which it said was substantially true, on the account given by Pc Rowland who, has, in turn, sued Mr Mitchell - maintaining that statements the MP made from December 2012 falsely suggested he had fabricated his allegations.

Mr Mitchell, who resigned as chief whip a month after the altercation, denied saying: "Best you learn your f****** place - you don't run this f****** government - you're f****** plebs."

He said he would never call a policeman a pleb "let alone a f****** pleb" -although he agreed he muttered under his breath but audibly 'I thought you lot were supposed to f****** help us,' but not at the officer.

Mr Price said that although the two week trial had involved 26 live witnesses plus many volumes of documents, it came down to what was said during a 15 second exchange between two people - which was only heard by them - and their veracity.