Boris refuses to answer questions in TV debate
Boris Johnson refused to commit to keeping the US ambassador in Washington during a badtempered TV debate with Jeremy Hunt in the race to become the UK’S next prime minister.
Mr Johnston was put on the spot over a growing diplomatic row with Donald Trump’s White House, and was accused of a lack of leadership for refusing to say whether he would resign if he didn’t deliver Brexit on 31 October as promised. Mr Johnson, the frontrunner in the race, said his rival was “defeatist” and pledged to give the UK its “mojo” back.
Boris Johnson was attacked for refusing to answer questions as the two Tory leadership contenders traded attacks in a bad-tempered head-tohead debate.
After Mr Hunt defended the UK ambassador in Washington in a growing row with Donald Trump’s White House, Mr Johnson refused to say whether he would keep diplomat Sir Kim Darroch in post.
Mr Hunt also questioned Mr Johnson’s leadership after he refused to say if he would resign rather than break his “do or die” commitment to deliver Brexit on 31 October.
The frontrunner to become Prime Minister hit back, calling Mr Hunt a “defeatist” and insisting only his leadership could “get back our mojo”.
The two men went into last night’s ITV debate with the Foreign Secretary having condemned Mr Trump for an astonishing twitter attack on the UK Ambassador over leaked diplomatic cables.
In tweets yesterday, Mr Trump called ambassador Sir Kim Darroch “a very stupid guy” and “wacky”, and claimed Theresa May had “failed” in Brexit talks.
Mr Hunt committed to keep the ambassador in post until his retirement, which is expected at Christmas, But Mr Johnson did not.
The former London Mayor continued to refuse to criticise the US President, saying “he was dragged into a British political debate, I don’t think that was necessarily the right thing to do...[but] our relationship with the US is of fantastic importance”.
Struggling to hide their mutual contempt, both men failed to give an answer when asked to name qualities they admired in one another.
Mr Johnson praised Mr Hunt’s “ability to change his mind” on Brexit, while Mr Hunt said sarcastically: “I really admire Boris’s ability to answer the question.
“I think he has this great ability – you ask him a question, he puts a smile on your face, and you forget what the question was.
“It’s a brilliant quality for a politician, maybe not a prime minister though.”
Earlier, Mr Hunt said: “Because Boris never answers the question, we’ve absolutely no idea what a Boris premiership would be like.”
On Brexit, Mr Johnson attacked Mr Hunt’s willingness to delay leaving the EU if a deal is in sight on 31 October as “the same old failed cankicking approach”.
Repeating his threat to withhold the UK’S £39bn Brexit divorce payment, Mr Johnson said it should be “suspended in creative ambiguity above the talks”.
Mr Johnson claimed a nodeal Brexit would be “vanishingly inexpensive if you prepare” and suggested that an “outbreak of realism” among MPS meant parliament would not seek to block a no-deal scenario.
In tense exchanges, the former London Mayor refused to say whether he would resign if he failed to deliver Brexit as promised. “I don’t want to hold out to the EU the prospect that they might encourage my resignation, if they refuse a deal,” Mr Johnson said.
Mr Hunt hit back, saying: “It’s do or die for the country, but not for the Prime Minister who doesn’t put his neck on the line. That’s not leadership... it’s not do or die, it’s just Boris Johnson in No 10 that matters.”
Mr Johnson dismissed his rival as a “stickler for detail” and a “defeatist who was on the other side of the argument” in the EU referendum.
He drew laughs from the audience for his repeated interruptions, heckling Mr Hunt over the Brexit deadline: “Christmas any good?”
Later Mr Hunt claimed his rival was “peddling optimism”.
“Being prime minister is that you tell people what they need to hear, not what they want to hear,” Mr Hunt said.
Mr Johnson replied: “I think we need some optimism quite frankly. We have had a bellyfull of defeatism.”
Corbyn takes major step on Brexit as peers resign over antisemitism
Labour supporters of a second EU referendum have hailed a “significant and very welcome step forward” after Jeremy Corbyn called on the government to stage a public vote on any Brexit deal, and confirmed his party would campaign to Remain.
Following a meeting of the shadow cabinet at Westminster, the Labour leader said that whoever wins the Conservative leadership contest should have the confidence to put any new deal they negotiate with Brussels – or no-deal – to the public.
The announcement came as Labour was hit by three high-profile resignations in the ongoing row over how it handles complaints of antisemitism, with a former party general secretary saying Labour was no longer
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a “safe environment” for Jews.
In his resignation letter, Lord Triesman said Labour was “institutionally antisemitic” and claimed the party leadership had used any excuse “to allow their allies to attack Jews or engage with anti-semites”.
Two other peers, Lord Turnberg and former health minister Lord Darzi of Denham has also resigned the Labour whip.
Lord Darzi told the BBC’S Newsnight: “As an Armenian survivor of the Armenian genocide I have zero tolerance to anti-semitism, Islamophobia or any other discrimination against religion or race.”
Responding to Mr Corbyn’s announcement on Brexit, Labour MP and chairman of the Brexit Select Committee Hilary Benn said it would be “widely welcomed” within the party.
And Edinburgh South MP Ian Murray said: “This is a significant and very welcome step forward. It’s taken a huge effort to get to this point... we must now get out there and tell voters that the only way to stop Brexit and remain in the EU permanently is to vote Labour.”
The move follows weeks of wrangling within the party over its position on Brexit, and comes a day after leaders of some of the party’s largest affiliated trade unions moved to back a second referendum.
In a letter to party members, Mr Corbyn said Labour would campaign for Remain “against either no-deal or a Tory deal”, but did not explain what Labour would do if it won a general election. Mr Corbyn wrote: “Now both Tory leadership candidates are threatening a no-deal Brexit – or at best a race to the bottom and a sweetheart deal with Donald Trump. He went on: “Whoever becomes the new prime minister should have the confidence to put their deal, or no-deal, back to the people in a public vote.
“In those circumstances, I want to make it clear that Labour would campaign for Remain against either no-deal or a Tory deal that does not protect the economy and jobs.”
The party was not entirely united behind the announcement, with Brexitbacking Labour MP John Mann saying “the one person who will be smiling at today’s announcement is Boris Johnson”.