Boris makes Brexit vow in push for No10
BORIS JOHNSON has vowed to take Britain out of the EU on October 31, “deal or no deal”, if he becomes prime minister as his leadership bid received heavyweight backing yesterday.
Hours after Theresa May announced June 7 as the date she would step down as Tory leader, the former foreign secretary insisted there would be no further extension of Article 50 if he won the race to succeed her.
Mr Johnson’s campaign received a boost as both Philip Hammond and Amber Rudd indicated they could back him, suggesting he could receive toplevel support from both Remain and Leave supporters.
Mrs May’s voice wavered as she told the nation it had been an honour to serve “the country I love” as Prime Minister, admitting she had failed to deliver Brexit and it was time for a new leader to try to do better.
Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, and Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, were among the first out of the blocks to make it clear they will stand, together with Esther Mcvey, who resigned from the Cabinet over Brexit.
Sir Graham Brady resigned as chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPS in order to consider his own leadership bid. The contest will formally begin on June 10, when MPS start the process of selecting two candidates who will go forward to a vote among Conservative Party members. The Party announced that a new Prime Minister will be in place by the time Parliament rises for the summer towards the end of July. Mrs May will remain in office until her successor is chosen.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Ms Rudd, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said she would not be among the candidates, but made it clear she could serve in a Johnson cabinet. The Telegraph also understands that the Chancellor has told friends he is considering giving his support to Mr Johnson because he believes he may be the Tories’ best chance of winning the next general election, though he has serious concerns about his views on a no-deal Brexit.
Mr Johnson was calling MPS to ask for their support just half an hour after Mrs May’s Downing Street announcement, sources have told The Telegraph.
The former foreign secretary, who is convinced he can negotiate a new Brexit deal with Brussels, said “a new leader will have the opportunity to do things differently” as he talked of the “momentum” of a new administration.
Speaking in Interlaken, Switzerland, where he was making a speech at an economic forum, Mr Johnson said: “We will leave the EU on October 31, deal or no deal. The way to get a good deal is to prepare for no deal. To get things done you need to be prepared to walk away.”
Mr Johnson, the runaway favourite among Tory members, said the next leader needed to “put Brexit to bed, pacify this bawling that’s been going on for so long. That can be done”.
Critics said he was already making promises he could not keep.
Tobias Ellwood, the defence minister, said: “If the Brexit experience to date has taught us anything, it’s to avoid making promises and drawing red lines you may later regret or cannot honour.”