Boris Johnson sets out personal Brexit ‘red lines’ in fresh challenge to Theresa May
3 min read
Boris Johnson has issued a fresh challenge to Theresa May's authority by laying out his four 'red lines' for Brexit.
In an interview with The Sun ahead of the Conservative conference in Manchester, the Foreign Secretary any transition period after leaving the EU should last "not a second more" than two years.
That is a harder approach than the Prime Minister, who said any such implementation phase should be “about two years” in her Florence speech last week.
Mr Johnson also said that that the UK must not accept new EU or European Court of Justice rulings during transition; that there could be no payments for single market access after the implentation period ends; and that the UK should not agree to shadow EU rules in order to access the single market.
The senior Tory insisted he was not making a play for the party leadership, claiming speculation about his ambitions had been “massively” overdone.
But the timing of the latest intervention - following his 4,200-word article in the Daily Telegraph two weeks ago - will inevitably lead to fresh speculation that he is making a pitch for Mrs May's job.
Mr Johnson said: "Am I impatient about it, do I want to get it done as fast as possible? Yes, absolutely. Do I want the delay to go on longer than two years? Not a second more.
You heard the Prime Minister say very clearly in Florence that she envisages the transition period being run under existing arrangements — that was the phrase she used, ‘The existing rules’.”
"What I have always said is that we will pay for things that are reasonable, scientific programmes.
“But when it comes to paying for access to the market, that won’t happen any more than we would expect them to pay us for access to our market."
He added: "The crucial thing I want to get over to Sun readers about Brexit is that it is going to be great and we need to believe in ourselves and believe we can do it. It is unstoppable. Ain’t no stopping us now.
“Most people can’t understand what this conversation is all about. We left. We voted for that last year — so let’s get on with it.”
Responding to Mr Johnson’s interview, Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake said the Foreign Secretary’s four red lines were “a recipe for disaster” and he should be sacked.
"The Conservatives are an utter shambles on the eve of their conference," he said. "We have a hapless Prime Minister who has a lost all control, and a Foreign Secretary running amok and making policy up on the hoof.
"Boris Johson's four red lines on Brexit are a recipe for disaster. He is contradicting his own government's position and making it even more likely that we'll see a chaotic and damaging exit with no deal.
"Theresa May must finally show some backbone and sack Boris Johnson, or she may as well resign now."
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