It’s a clear choice, says Theresa – me or chaos
THERESA May last night issued a stark warning of the dangers to Britain posed by Jeremy Corbyn and his lieutenants as she launched a final push for votes.
The Prime Minister said a vote for Labour could put gaffe-prone Diane Abbott in charge of Britain’s national security and ‘Marxist’ John McDonnell in control of the tax system.
She told the Daily Mail that Mr Corbyn, who lost a vote of confidence among his own MPs last year, would be too weak to negotiate a good Brexit deal.
‘The public faces a clear choice tomorrow,’ she said. ‘A vote for me and my team to make a success of Brexit or a decision to risk it all with Jeremy Corbyn and his coalition of chaos. The public can vote for their local Conservative candidate and deliver a Government with a plan for Brexit, the right policies to protect our national security and a commitment to keep taxes on families low.
‘Or they can vote to put Jeremy Corbyn in charge of the Brexit negotiations, John McDonnell and his Marxist policies in charge of the economy and Diane Abbott in charge of our police, our borders and our national security.’ Tory strategists have dubbed Corbyn, Abbott and McDonnell the ‘toxic trio’, believing that their hard-Left views will repel Middle England.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson stepped up the rhetoric last night, saying Mr Corbyn had ‘taken the side of just about every adversary this country has had in my life- time’. Mr Corbyn described Tory claims that he was unpatriotic as ‘utterly ridiculous’. Mrs May last week said the Labour leader ‘doesn’t believe in Britain’ – a claim he described as ‘offensive’ – but Tory sources pointed out that Mr Corbyn refused to sing the national anthem at a Battle of Britain memorial service in St Paul’s Cathedral after becoming Labour leader in 2015. And Mr Johnson launched a fullscale attack on his record, describing him as ‘soft and muddleheaded’ on terror and pointing out he had even voted against a ban on the Al Qaeda terror group. Mr Johnson also poured scorn on the prospects of Mr Corbyn securing a good Brexit deal.
The Labour leader has said he would never countenance leaving the EU without a deal, even if Brussels tries to punish the UK – holding out the prospect that Brexit might never happen.
Mr Johnson said Mr Corbyn would become the prisoner of his likely coalition partners, Nicola Sturgeon and Tim Farron, who both oppose Brexit.
He said Mr Corbyn would go into the negotiations this month ‘with his coalition partners perched on his shoulders like a pair of parrots jabbering in his ear and trying to stuff up Brexit’.
Police are preparing to step up security at polling stations tomorrow, but asked if voters should be concerned for their safety, Mrs May said: ‘No’.
She added: ‘The national threat level is at severe, which does mean that a terrorist attack is highly likely. It has been severe for some time.
‘The police have been planning and ensuring people’s safety on that basis. People should go out there to vote. I want to see people going out to vote because I think that is a very important message – that our democracy will not be deterred.’