An election – genius or political suicide?

Boris Johnson is clearly a very clever man – no one gets to inhabit Downing Street who hasn’t got something about them. He’s only been in the prime ministerial post for a couple of weeks and has already vowed to ‘fix’ the majority of the UK’s problems – health, police, Brexit – by spending billions of pounds.

One has to question where the money is coming from and is Britain going to end up paying for his extravagance in the years ahead?

Boris has hardly had time to plant his feet firmly under the cabinet table at No 10 and already the rumours are rife that he will call a general election before the Brexit deadline of October 31.

If he does and the result goes spectacularly wrong for him – as it did for Theresa May not long after the referendum result – Bo Jo could be heading for one of the shortest tenures in Downing Street in recent history.

But if he does call a general election in the hope of increasing his incredibly slim majority in the House of Commons, or is forced to call an election if Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn files a motion of no confidence in the government, if successful it just could give him the mandate to pursue a Brexit on his terms.

No matter what happens over a pre-Brexit election, parties here in Portsmouth are ready for any outcome.

City council leader Lib Dem Gerald Vernon-Jackson and Tory leader Donna Jones will fight the Portsmouth South seat currently held by Labour leader and MP Stephen Morgan.

Cllr Vernon-Jackson said: ‘I don’t think anybody voted in the referendum thinking we would be crashing out of Europe in such a disorderly way without a deal.’

Donna Jones doesn’t believe there will be an election before Brexit, but is confident of victory if there is, and Mr Morgan has said none of the other candidates could be ‘trusted to protect’ Portsmouth’s public services.

The most pressing issue for the great British public is getting Brexit done and only time will tell if that is under the premiership of Boris Johnson or someone else.