Michael Gove has admitted “moral cowardice” during the Brexit campaign by not being upfront with David Cameron about his role in the leave campaign.

In an interview for the Political Currency podcast with George Osborne and Ed Balls, the levelling up secretary said he was initially reluctant to take a prominent role in the campaign, but had been persuaded to by the Vote Leave campaign coordinator, Dominic Cummings.

Osborne, the former chancellor who campaigned for Remain, said Gove had told Cameron in the Downing Street plan that he would not play a prominent role. He asked the minister: “Did you deceive David? […] He certainly felt betrayed.”

Gove said he did not think he had deceived Cameron but had ended up “going further” in the campaign, by taking part in TV shows and debates, than he had anticipated and he should have been “clearer earlier”.

“And I think that was an example of on the one hand, cowardice on my part, moral cowardice … on the other hand, a recognition that perhaps there’s this feeling in politics, perhaps something will turn up, perhaps this moment won’t come when we have to make that decision,” he said. “But I think David, entirely fairly, should have expected me to have been more upfront earlier.”