Boris exposed (Again!)

Boris Johnson is a shameless liar as his former wives, ex-mistresses and colleagues will tell you. That bit isn't news but what did catch my attention this week was that his flat-out fibs were exposed in a very public way. During a speech on Brexit in Staffordshire, the Tory toff was put on the spot by the brilliant Michael Crick. When asked about making claims about Turkey entering the EU during the Vote Leave campaign he denied ever bringing the topic up.

So several journalists dusted down their archived articles and old video clips of Britain’s answer to Donald Trump and lo and behold what did they find? Well, several instances from 2016 where he pushed anti-Turkish messages to stoke up immigration fears. This included the suggestion that 77 million Turks could come to the UK if we stayed in the European Union.

Warnings about the made-up consequences of possible Turkish accession to the EU and the claim that Brexit would mean an extra £350m for the NHS were central messages of the campaign run by Vote Leave. The preposterous drivel was among the key reasons why many people were fooled into voting to bid ‘au revoir’ to Europe.

As with everything Boris does his speech last week was part of his barely disguised bid to replace Theresa May. Fortunately, I think the wheels are starting to fall off that campaign as more journalists are exposing him for the liar he is.