Boris Johnson rules out second EU referendum if Tories fail to get a majority
2 min read
Boris Johnson has ruled out offering a second Brexit referendum if the Conservatives fail to bag a majority in December's election.
The Prime Minister said a fresh vote on Britain's EU members would be "bad for our country".
The comments come after senior Liberal Democrat Sir Ed Davey said his party would demand a second referendum from Mr Johnson if the Tories end up forming a minority government following the election.
Sir Ed told the BBC last week: "If it's a minority Tory government, Boris Johnson says he wants to deliver Brexit... the only way he can do that is with a People's Vote and so we will challenge him and we will work with others to say if you wanna do what you said... work for a People's Vote."
The SNP has meanwhile increased its calls for a second referendum on Scottish independence as the 12 December poll looms.
But the suggestion that a minority Conservative government could agree to either vote was shot down in flames by the Prime Minister as he launched the Scottish Tory manifesto on Tuesday.
"I don't normally answer that kind of hypothetical question but I think in that case... I'm going to make an exception," he said.
"I certainly can rule out any such referendum... I genuinely think they would be bad for our country.
"It's not the way forward now. We need to honour democracy, we need to get the economy moving."
And he said of the Conservatives' own plans: "This is a transformative one nation agenda - and we want to get on with it."
The comments came as the Prime Minister doubled down in his attack on the SNP and claimed that an SNP-backed Labour government would spark both referendums at a cost of £155m.
Speaking at the Scottish campaign launch, Mr Johnson argued that Labour and the SNP would prolong what he called the "endless dither, delay, deadlock, division, defeatism, despair, doubt" gripping British politics.
"We need to get on," he declared.
"And I'm afraid that all that Nicola and Jeremy Corbyn would do together is waste 2020 and I think partocuarly the EU referendum would be very divisive.
"And we had a referendum in Scotland, didn't we, in 2014?
"And I think that Nicola Sturgeon told the people of Scotland at the time that it was a 'once in a generation event', did she not?
"I think she should stick to that line. It was a good one."
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