Downing Street defends Boris Johnson over ‘Brexit punishment beatings’ quip

Downing Street was forced to come to the defence of British foreign secretary Boris Johnson after he warned the French president, François Hollande, not to respond to Brexit by trying to “administer punishment beatings” in the manner of “some world war two movie”.

The foreign secretary evoked the darkest period of France’s recent history as he rejected comments by an adviser to Hollande who said Britain should not expect a better trading relationship outside Europe than it currently enjoys inside.

At a foreign policy conference in Delhi, Johnson said: “If Hollande wants to administer punishment beatings to anybody who seeks to escape [the EU], in the manner of some world war two movie, I don’t think that is the way forward. It’s not in the interests of our friends and partners.”

His words came only 24 hours after Theresa May reminded her cabinet ministers in her Lancaster House speech to show restraint by warning “any stray word” could make securing a Brexit deal more difficult.

Although the French government declined to respond to Johnson’s remarks, Guy Verhofstadt, the lead Brexit negotiator for the European parliament, branded them “abhorrent and deeply unhelpful”.

British politicians accused Johnson of being unfit to head the diplomatic service. Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: “This is an utterly crass and clueless remark from the man who is supposed to be our chief diplomat.