BORIS: I WILL NOT QUIT
Johnson won’t go over Brexit row
BORIS Johnson has insisted he is not resigning, despite reports he is set to leave Government.
The Foreign Secretary was yesterday asked about claims he was set to quit over Theresa May’s Brexit position. Mr Johnson, who is attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York, replied: “No”. He added: “We are working together to make sure that Britain can take advantage of the opportunities of Brexit.”
Mrs May is not thought to have seen Mr Johnson since he wrote a 4,000-word essay on his Brexit vision last week, even though they are staying in the same hotel in New York. But they were both expected to be at a reception for Commonwealth leaders last night, and Mr Johnson is due at Mrs May’s address to world leaders today. The PM’s spokesman said Mrs May had full confidence in the Foreign Secretary. Downing Street added: “Boris Johnson is doing a good job.” Reports suggest that the Foreign Secretary fears that Mrs May will use a key speech in Florence on Friday, which Mr Johnson will attend, to commit to paying the EU for access to the single market. A “Swiss-style” arrangement is something he “could not live with”, it has been reported. Mrs May will brief the Cabinet on her speech tomorrow. Earlier, Tory grandee Ken Clarke said Mr Johnson should have been fired.
Mr Clarke said: “Sounding off is totally unhelpful. He shouldn’t exploit the fact that [Mrs May] hasn’t got a majority in Parliament. Normally, a Foreign Secretary would be sacked instantly for that.”
Former Tory leader William Hague has warned that disunity over Brexit could hand No10 to Jeremy Corbyn. He wrote: “It is high time that all members of the Government were putting forward the same points.
“If not, there will be no point Conservatives discussing who is going to be the Prime Minister in the coming years, because Jeremy Corbyn will be Prime Minister.”
We are working together... to make sure Britain can take advantage of the opportunities of Brexit BORIS JOHNSON IN NEW YORK YESTERDAY