Theresa May won’t sack Boris Johnson despite leaked tape warning of Brexit ‘meltdown’ and crafty Chinese negotiators
The British foreign secretary also said he had come to admire the chaotic negotiating style of US President Donald Trump, and that Trump would do well if he oversaw Brexit
UK Prime Minister Theresa May has resisting calls for her to sack Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in the wake of an explosive leaked recording, saying Johnson has “strong views on Brexit … but so do I”.
In a private speech to the Conservative Way Forward group, Johnson is heard dismissing the cautious approach of Philip Hammond’s Treasury, which he said had focused on “mumbo jumbo” predictions about short-term disruption, instead of the potential gains from leaving the EU.
He also predicted a “meltdown” over negotiations with Brussels, suggested that US President Donald Trump could do a better job, and said China “will try to stiff” the UK.
May, who was in the air en route to the G7 summit in Canada when the foreign secretary’s words were leaked, was questioned about Johnson’s comments upon landing in Quebec.
“These are complex negotiations. Boris has strong views on Brexit but so do I,” she told Channel 4 News. “I want to deliver for the British people, that’s exactly what we are doing as a government and if you look at the process of these negotiations – nobody ever said it was going to be easy.”
I have become more and more convinced that there is method in [Trump’s] madness