Boris Johnson kicked off his campaign to succeed Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday with a commitment to lead Britain out of the European Union on October 31, warning his divided Conservative Party “delay means defeat”.
Johnson, 54, favourite for the top job nearly three years since he led the referendum campaign to leave the EU, praised the strength of the British economy, promised to deliver Brexit by the end of October and tackle despair across the country.
To a packed room where some supportive lawmakers were forced to stand, Johnson drew on his past as a former London mayor to try to persuade Conservatives that only he could take the party to election victory, explaining away some of his well-documented gaffes as his desire to “speak as directly as I can”.
“After three years and two missed deadlines, we must leave the EU on October 31,” he said as a heckler repeatedly shouted from outside the Royal Academy of Engineering, just off The Mall in central London.
“I am not aiming for a no-deal outcome,” said Johnson, a 54-year-old former foreign minister. “I don’t think that we will end up with any such thing, but it is only responsible to prepare vigorously and seriously for no-deal.
“Indeed it is astonishing that anyone could suggest dispensing with that vital tool in the negotiation.”
May’s premiership crumbled after she repeatedly failed to convince parliament to ratify the divorce deal she negotiated with the EU.
Supporters of Brexit said May’s deal would have kept the UK far too closely tied to the bloc.
Johnson, whose unconventional style has helped him shrug off a series of scandals in the past, has won over many in his party by arguing that only he can rescue the Conservatives by delivering Brexit.
For many, the contest for prime minister is his to lose — he has the most declared Conservative supporters in parliament and is widely popular among the party’s members, the people who will ultimately choose May’s successor.
In a room full of Conservatives loyal to his campaign who groaned when journalists brought up lists of past indiscretions, including a report he had taken cocaine, Johnson repeatedly sidestepped questions, using his trademark colourful metaphors and language to change the subject.
Asked if he could be trusted, Johnson said he could.
On drugs, which has become a campaign issue after rival, Michael Gove was forced to admit he had taken cocaine when he was a young journalist, Johnson said: “I think what most people want us to focus on in this campaign, if I may say so, is what we can do for them and what our plans are for this great country of ours.”
As in the 2016 referendum on EU membership, Johnson’s message is clear: any more Brexit delays and the Conservative Party risks opening the door to a government led by opposition Labour leader and veteran socialist Jeremy Corbyn.
“We will simply not get a result if we give the impression that we want to go on kicking the can down the road and yet more delay,” Johnson said. “Delay means defeat, delay means ruin.”
“Around the country there is a feeling of disillusion and even despair at our ability to get things done. The longer it goes on, the worse the risk that there will be serious contamination and a real loss of confidence.”
The United Kingdom could be heading towards a constitutional crisis over Brexit as many of the candidates vying to succeed May are prepared to leave the EU on October 31 without a deal but parliament has indicated it will try to thwart such a scenario, concerned about the potential economic and other disruptions.
The Conservatives suffered their worst result in centuries in a European Parliament election last month.
Opinion polls indicate a snap election would produce a hung parliament, with neither the Conservatives nor Labour winning a majority.
Conservative Party leadership candidate Boris Johnson speaks at the launch of his campaign in London, yesterday.
