CORBYN’S YELLOW BELLIES

PM’s election war cry as he savages Opposition pact to block snap poll

BORIS Johnson accused Jeremy Corbyn of cowardice last night as the Labour leader ordered his MPs to block an early general election again.

The Prime Minister said Mr Corbyn and other opposition leaders were ‘trying to disguise their preposterous yellow bellies by coming up with evermore outrageous excuses for delaying an election until the end of October, or perhaps November or perhaps until hell freezes over’.

Mr Johnson told the Commons ‘dither, delay, procrastination and confusion’ had become a hallmark of Mr Corbyn’s leadership.

Labour was last night set to join other opposition parties in blocking an election before Brexit has been delayed beyond the latest October 31 deadline. The parties have agreed they will not vote for an election before October 21, meaning a poll will not take place until the end of November at the earliest.

Under the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act, calling an election ahead of time requires the support of two thirds of MPs.

Labour said it would not support the Prime Minister’s ‘ploy’ for an early general election because of the risk that he could take the UK out of the EU without a deal.

But Mr Johnson said: ‘Why are they conniving to delay Brexit in defiance of the referendum, costing the country an extra £250million a week for the privilege, enough to upgrade more than five hospitals or train 4,000 new nurses? The only possible explanation is they fear that I will win it and secure a renewed mandate for a course of action they disagree with.

‘For the last three years, they have schemed, plotted and conspired to overturn the verdict of the British people delivered in a referendum, which in a crowning irony almost all of them voted to hold.’

Mr Corbyn will today promise the biggest ‘people-powered election campaign’ in history – just hours after blocking one for the second time.

Speaking at the TUC conference in Brighton, Mr Corbyn will say: ‘No one can trust the word of a prime minister who is threatening to break the law to force through No Deal.

‘A general election is coming. But we won’t allow Johnson to dictate the terms. And I can tell you this – we’re ready for that election. We’re ready to unleash the biggest people-powered campaign we’ve ever seen.’

The Houses of Parliament were last night set to be prorogued for five weeks until October 14.

During this time MPs and peers will not sit at Westminster. Ministers insist this is because they want to start a new Parliamentary session with a Queen’s Speech next month.

But critics have accused them of avoiding debate on Brexit ahead of the October 31 deadline.

Outgoing Commons Speaker John Bercow yesterday granted former Attorney General Dominic Grieve’s application for an emergency debate which was seeking to ensure the publication of Government communications relating to the prorogation of Parliament – including text messages on the mobile phones of key Downing Street aides.

MPs last night backed the move by 311 votes to 302, but Downing Street said it would not hand over the information.

Mr Grieve told the Commons: ‘The House is about to be prorogued for five weeks. Two weeks after we return is the anticipated date on which we are going to leave the European Union. There is much which is left undebated and, in particular, we are not going to have an opportunity to ask necessary questions of the Government.

‘We are not going to have the opportunity to ask what I think are the necessary and unfortunately searching questions about the Government’s motives in proroguing this House and the potential difference between what they have said in public in this matter and what the evidence suggests is the reality.’

Legislation that became law yesterday after being passed by opposition MPs and Tory rebels requires Mr Johnson to ask Brussels for a Brexit extension to January 31 if no exit agreement has been approved by October 19. But there are fears that Mr Johnson will not carry out the request after saying he would rather be ‘dead in a ditch’ than ask for a further delay.

Plaid Cymru Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts told other opposition leaders yesterday they must be ready to impeach the PM if he refused to carry out the request.

‘If the Prime Minister refuses to seek an extension to the period under Article 50, he will have broken the law – plain and simple – and he must be subject to legal repercussions,’ she said.

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford has said his MPs will reject the PM’s call for an early election until No Deal is no longer a possibility.

‘Schemed, plotted and conspired’