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Cameron 'baffled' by Johnson's EU stance before Brussels summit Cameron 'baffled' by Johnson's EU stance before Brussels summit
(about 4 hours later)
David Cameron railed in private against Boris Johnson’s stance on Britain’s EU membership even before the London mayor disclosed he was to campaign for Brexit, it has emerged.David Cameron railed in private against Boris Johnson’s stance on Britain’s EU membership even before the London mayor disclosed he was to campaign for Brexit, it has emerged.
In a sign of the depth of the rift at senior levels of the Conservative party, the prime minister told a gathering of business leaders in Downing Street last Wednesday that he was astonished that the mayor would risk the future of the City of London.In a sign of the depth of the rift at senior levels of the Conservative party, the prime minister told a gathering of business leaders in Downing Street last Wednesday that he was astonished that the mayor would risk the future of the City of London.
Cameron let rip at Johnson in No 10 the day before he travelled to Brussels for the EU summit, and one day after he had met Johnson, who at that stage was still agonising over which side to support in the referendum. Cameron let rip at Johnson in No 10 the day before he travelled to Brussels for the EU summit and one day after he had met Johnson, who at that stage was still agonising over which side to support in the referendum.
One source familiar with Cameron’s meeting – with organisations including the Institute of Directors, the Confederation of British Industry and the British Chambers of Commerce – said: “How a representative of London could look so ambiguously on the goose that lays the golden egg was a source of bafflement to the prime minister.”One source familiar with Cameron’s meeting – with organisations including the Institute of Directors, the Confederation of British Industry and the British Chambers of Commerce – said: “How a representative of London could look so ambiguously on the goose that lays the golden egg was a source of bafflement to the prime minister.”
Downing Street, which is keen to avoid inflaming tensions with the London mayor after the prime minister mocked him in the Commons chamber on Monday, said it did not recognise the accounts of the meeting.Downing Street, which is keen to avoid inflaming tensions with the London mayor after the prime minister mocked him in the Commons chamber on Monday, said it did not recognise the accounts of the meeting.
The disclosure about the prime minister’s criticism of Johnson came as George Osborne, the chancellor, accused the London mayor of treating the EU referendum campaign like a “parlour game”.The disclosure about the prime minister’s criticism of Johnson came as George Osborne, the chancellor, accused the London mayor of treating the EU referendum campaign like a “parlour game”.
Osborne, who was understood to be referencing a dinner the mayor hosted for Michael Gove at his Islington home last week, told the BBC: “You’ve seen the value of the pound fall and it reminds us all that this is not some parlour game.”Osborne, who was understood to be referencing a dinner the mayor hosted for Michael Gove at his Islington home last week, told the BBC: “You’ve seen the value of the pound fall and it reminds us all that this is not some parlour game.”
Cameron on Friday turned on his former patron Michael Howard – now Lord Howard of Lympne – after the former Conservative leader said a second referendum could be held after an exit vote. Johnson appeared to change his stance on Friday night when he indicated that he no longer supported the idea of a second referendum. He indicated earlier in the week that he still favoured a second referendum which would be held after negotiations on a British exit if there was a leave vote in the June poll on EU membership.
Howard, who employed Cameron as a special adviser during his time as home secretary in the mid 1990s, called for a pause of about a month after a Brexit vote to allow the EU to reconsider the current deal. A second referendum could then be held on a “different deal” that EU leaders might be tempted to negotiate with the UK to ensure that ties are not severed altogether. Asked by the Times whether a second referendum could still take place, Johnson said: “No. Out is out. What I want is to get out and then negotiate a series of trade arrangements around the world.”
Cameron earlier turned on his former patron Michael Howard – now Lord Howard of Lympne – after the former Conservative leader said a second referendum could be held after an exit vote.
Howard, who employed Cameron as a special adviser during his time as home secretary before becoming Tory leader, called for a pause of about a month if there was a Brexit vote to allow the EU to reconsider the current deal. A second referendum could then be held on a “different deal” that EU leaders might be tempted to negotiate with the UK to ensure that ties are not severed altogether.
The prime minister declined to name Howard but described the idea of a second referendum as a “complete fiction”. Cameron told workers at the GE Aviation plant near Caerphilly, south Wales: “I happen to think this idea that there is some third way, as some are suggesting, between in and out ... is a complete fiction ... It is a very simple question on the ballot paper – you either stay in the EU or you leave. People really need to understand it is a single decision, it is a final decision.”The prime minister declined to name Howard but described the idea of a second referendum as a “complete fiction”. Cameron told workers at the GE Aviation plant near Caerphilly, south Wales: “I happen to think this idea that there is some third way, as some are suggesting, between in and out ... is a complete fiction ... It is a very simple question on the ballot paper – you either stay in the EU or you leave. People really need to understand it is a single decision, it is a final decision.”
Howard had earlier called on people to vote to leave the EU on the grounds that it is “flawed and failing”. He challenged a series of dire warnings from ministers about the dangers of Britain leaving the EU by saying that, as the world’s fifth largest economy, Britain should have the confidence to negotiate a strong deal. Howard earlier called on people to vote to leave the EU on the grounds that it was “flawed and failing”. He challenged a series of dire warnings from ministers about the dangers of Britain leaving the EU by saying that, as the world’s fifth largest economy, Britain should have the confidence to negotiate a strong deal.
But Osborne warned that an exit would represent a “profound economic shock” for Britain. The chancellor told the BBC during a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Shanghai: “The global economy is facing more risks and more uncertainty than at any point since the financial crisis in 2008 so this would be the very worst time for Britain to take the enormous economic gamble of leaving the EU.But Osborne warned that an exit would represent a “profound economic shock” for Britain. The chancellor told the BBC during a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Shanghai: “The global economy is facing more risks and more uncertainty than at any point since the financial crisis in 2008 so this would be the very worst time for Britain to take the enormous economic gamble of leaving the EU.
“This is about people’s jobs and their livelihoods and their living standards. In my judgment, as chancellor, leaving the EU would represent a profound economic shock for our country, for all of us and I am going to do everything I can to prevent that happening.”“This is about people’s jobs and their livelihoods and their living standards. In my judgment, as chancellor, leaving the EU would represent a profound economic shock for our country, for all of us and I am going to do everything I can to prevent that happening.”
Andrea Leadsom, the energy minister who is campaigning to take Britain out of the EU, rejected the chancellor’s analysis. Leadsom told The World at One on BBC Radio 4: “A profound economic shock is unlikely. It is unthinkable that Europe would somehow stop trading with the UK were we to leave the EU.”Andrea Leadsom, the energy minister who is campaigning to take Britain out of the EU, rejected the chancellor’s analysis. Leadsom told The World at One on BBC Radio 4: “A profound economic shock is unlikely. It is unthinkable that Europe would somehow stop trading with the UK were we to leave the EU.”