Boris Johnson has again refused to answer questions over a row with his girlfriend Carrie Symonds that led to police being called to their home.

Early on Friday, police were called to the PM hopeful's home after neighbours heard a loud altercation between him and Ms Symonds.

He has also refused to answer questions about a picture of him and his girlfriend taken in Sussex over the weekend – which many have said is staged and may have been released by either party to try and spin the row.

More than six hours after it was published, no freelance photographers or picture agencies have stepped forward to claim they took the photo

Mr Johnson  since faced increased pressure to answer questions about the incident and his fractious and controversial private life.

He dodged the question five times at a Conservative Party hustings on Saturday.

Confronted by Ms Kuenssberg during an interview on the BBC he once again refused

The BBC journalist asked: "Can you just tell us what happened at your partner's home a couple of nights ago?"

Boris Johnson replied: "I…would love to tell you about all sorts of things Laura, but I've made it a rule over many, many years and I think you've interviewed me loads of times, 

"I do not talk about stuff involving my family, my loved ones.

"And there's a very good reason for that. That is that, if you do, you drag them into things that, really is, is, in a way that is not fair on them."

But Ms Kuenssberg confronted him about the a photograph that emerged yesterday which seemed to be a staged picture of the couple in order to give a impression a happy couple.

She asked:  "But you seem to care about privacy so much that yesterday a photographer, or someone with a phone, just happened to stumble upon you in the middle of the Sussex countryside – I mean are you just trying to have this both ways?"

But the Tory leadership hopeful wasn't being drawn.

Mr Johnson said: "Look, I repeat my key point too which is that over many, many years and you can look back at innumerable statements I gave when I was Mayor when, I just do not go into this stuff, and there's a good reason for it but it's actually I think what people want to know is what is going on with this guy, does he, when it comes to trust, when it comes to character all those things, does he deliver what he says he's going to deliver? And that is the key thing."

His campaign has revealed that it is planning a closely controlled "media blitz" over the coming days to show he has not gone into hiding after the row.

But rival Mr Hunt described him as a "bottler" for failing to go head-to-head in a television debate.

Police said there was no cause for police action about Friday's incident.

The Sussex image emerged today of the top Tory, 55, and 31-year-old Carrie Symonds holding hands at a secluded garden table – two days after police were called to reports of a domestic row at her flat.

The snap in long grass somewhere in Sussex was revealed by MailOnline, which quoted a friend as saying: "They love each other very much and want to get married as soon as the time is right.

"Boris only has eyes for Carrie and she is totally smitten with him."

But the pair face questions from politicians and celebrities over how, where and why the photo was taken.

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