ON POINTLESS STATE OPENING A £220K QUEEN’S PREACH »» »»
Johnson slammed for propaganda ploy Brexit deal talks come to the crunch
BORIS Johnson will spend £220,000 tomorrow dragging the Queen to the State Opening of a Parliament he intends to shut down seven days later.
The 93-year-old monarch has been asked to read what amounts to the Tory election manifesto.
That will be debated through the week, ending in the first sitting of the Commons on a Saturday since the 1982 Falklands War, where the PM will outline any Brexit deal he can pull off with the EU.
Mr Johnson then hopes to dissolve Parliament a week tomorrow to prepare for a general election on November 28.
But that could be scuppered if Jeremy Corbyn does not agree to an election or the PM fails to get a deal with Brussels.
Mr Johnson is 66 MPs short of an overall majority so has little chance of getting his Queen’s Speech outlining the Government’s future plans through the Commons.
But he is banking on g getting g a deal at the European Council in Brussels on Friday.
The Remain Alliance e of rebel MPs are now planning to amend the Queen’s Speech to secure another EU referendum m or, in the event of a no-deal, ensure ure the PM is forced to ask for a Brexit exit delay.
A Westminster source ce said: “We’re not playing Boris’s s crucial. We are continuing to work on an exit deal so we can move on to negotiating a future relationship based on free trade.”
UK and EU negotiators are having “intense technical discussions” on the proposed deal throughout this weekend.
But yesterday the DUP cast a shadow over the compromise.
Any deal is likely to involve the UK enforcing the EU’s rules and tariffs on goods moving from Britain to Northern Ireland.
In a classic fudge, the province games. Usually a political party would be in both the EU and UK puts its manifesto in the Queen’s customs unions.
Speech. The PM is putting his That would allow it to benefit manifesto into the Queen’s mouth.” from UK trade deals with the rest
Remainer MP Anna Soubry of the world. added: “If Johnson does somehow But DUP deputy leader Nigel secure a withdrawal agreement Dodds said: “Northern Ireland with the EU, then he will struggle must stay in a full UK customs to get it through Parliament. union, full stop.”
“His best bet would be to make Of the £ 220,000 the State any agreement conditional on a Opening costs the taxpayer, people’s vote.” £171,000 is for temporarily clearing
Mr Johnson said: “Getting Brexit Westminster of anti-terror barriers done by 31st t October is absolutely and reinstalling them af afterwards.
Police overtime runs to £10,000 and 1,100 troops will line the route of the royal trip from Bu Buckingham Palace to the Lords while w 200 mounted Household Cavalry escort the Queen’s car carriage.
nigel.nelson @sundaymirror.co.uk