Brexit backlash has Johnson on the ropes
PM warns he will call election as MPs move to bar no-deal
With Prime Minister Boris Johnson weakened by a major defeat in Parliament, defiant British lawmakers are moving to bar him from pursuing a “no-deal” departure from the European Union.
In retaliation, Johnson plans to call an early general election that would put his own future, and that of his Conservative Party, on the line in a bid for a new Parliament that would back his Brexit policy.
Johnson enjoyed a brief honeymoon after taking power in July, dominating the news with public spending programmes while Parliament was in recess, but that came to an abrupt end yesterday as rebellious lawmakers — including 21 of Johnson’s fellow Conservatives — voted 328 to 301 to seize control of the Brexit agenda.
There is still great uncertainty about how — or even if — Britain will ultimately leave the prosperous EU bloc and strike out on its own, a cherished goal for Johnson and his inner circle of Brexit-minded advisers.
The course remains unpredictable. Even if the rebels force through legislation blocking a no-deal Brexit on October 31, an extension beyond that date can only take effect if each of the other 27 EU nations approves it.
The Conservative revolt comes at a cost as the party frays under Brexit pressure. Some senior Conservative Party figures, including former Treasury chief Philip Hammond and Winston Churchill’s grandson, Nicholas Soames, joined the rebellion and face expulsion from the party after decades of service.
The Prime Minister’s risky plan to call an early election also may be
difficult to achieve. He would need a two-thirds majority to back him in Parliament, and wary opposition parties do not trust Johnson to make good on any promise to hold an election before the October 31 Brexit deadline.
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who has been demanding an election for several years, said he would only back a new election if the legislation blocking a no-deal is already in place.
A frustrated Johnson complained after the vote that Parliament was giving the EU control of the negotiations and said he would not seek a delay under any circumstances.
“I don’t want an election but if MPs vote tomorrow to stop the negotiations and to compel another pointless delay of Brexit, potentially for years, then that will be the only way to resolve this,” Johnson said.
If an election is scheduled, it would probably be held in mid-October. There are many unknowns — for starters, it is not clear whether there might eventually be an alliance between Johnson and the Brexit Party led by eurosceptic Nigel Farage. The pair teamed up effectively in the 2016 Brexit referendum.
Labour’s position is not entirely clear. Corbyn opposes a no-deal departure but has disappointed many party members who want him to call for Brexit to be stopped altogether.
The vote in Parliament yesterday suggests strong support for preventing the no-deal scenario. It was only made possible by 21 Conservative Party legislators who defied Johnson and could see their parliamentary careers come to an early end because of it.
The cross-party rebels are fighting to prevent a no-deal Brexit because of fears it would gravely damage the economy and plunge Britain into a prolonged recession while also leading to possible medicine and food shortages. The vote came hours after Johnson suffered a key defection from his party — MP Phillip Lee joining the Liberal Democrats — costing him his working majority in Parliament.
Johnson and his backers say the fears about no-deal are overblown and that voters who backed Brexit are demanding action, not more talk.
Downing Street said after the vote that party members who defied Johnson on the vote would be expelled. Johnson’s hardline stance has infuriated many longtime, prominent party members.
Dominic Grieve, who was Attorney General in David Cameron’s Government, says the expulsion threats demonstrate Johnson’s “ruthlessness”.
Prominent Tories Justine Greening, a former Cabinet minister, and Alistair Burt, a former Foreign Office Minister, signalled their intention not to seek re-election rather than follow Johnson's Brexit policy.
Former Treasury chief Hammond warned of the “fight of a lifetime” if officials tried to prevent him from running in the next election.
The longest-serving of the Tory rebels, former Chancellor Ken Clarke, told the BBC that he didn’t recognise his party any more and that Johnson had “the most right-wing Cabinet a Conservative government has ever produced”.
Johnson last week manoeuvred to give his political opponents even less time to block a chaotic no-deal Brexit, getting the Queen’s approval to suspend Parliament. His outraged critics sued, and lawyers arguing the case at a court in Scotland completed submissions yesterday. The judge could rule as soon as today.
Two other major legal challenges to the suspension are pending.
In one of the cases, former Prime Minister John Major — a Conservative Party grandee — plans to argue that Johnson’s planned suspension of Parliament should be overturned by the courts.