'Come off it, sunshine': Boris Johnson hits back at John Major
|
Version 0 of 1. Boris Johnson had said he is fed up with people “droning and moaning” about the risks of Brexit, saying that he felt like telling those raising concerns such as Sir John Major to “Come off it, sunshine”. The foreign secretary did not name the former prime minister but made clear in a speech to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) that Major was among those who had been warning that “the sky was about to fall in”. “And I feel like saying: ‘Come off it, sunshine.’ Every generation hears its prognostications of gloom. And look at us today. We are living longer than ever before. We are healthier than ever before,” said Johnson. Asked specifically about Major – who accused the government of resorting to cheap rhetoric that had soured the atmosphere with the EU27 – Johnson said the outcome of Brexit would be “fantastic”. “It’s very important as we set out on this journey that we are positive about the outcome,” he said, insisting that was the spirit that the government was taking into talks. He argued that the rest of the EU was also ready for a positive negotiation that would be good for both sides. “I won’t hide it from you: when I first went to other European capitals they were in a state of shock, of puzzlement; they hadn’t expected the Brexit outcome. That mood has almost entirely vanished,” he said, insisting that the UK would still be a key player in Europe on defence and aid as well as being a strong economic force in the region. Asked if a trade deal could take longer than two years, Johnson said: “Time is [an issue.] You’re right. It depends how our friends and partners choose to handle it. They can play it long, they have electoral considerations, as everybody knows. I think there’s every reason why we [should] go at this full tilt and get it done within two years. But let’s see how it goes.” On Monday night, Major angered senior figures in the government by hitting out at the language and approach that has been adopted so far. “In my own experience, the most successful results are obtained when talks are conducted with goodwill,” he said. “It is much easier to reach agreement with a friend than a quarrelsome neighbour,” he said. “Behind the diplomatic civilities, the atmosphere is already sour. A little more charm, and a lot less cheap rhetoric, would do much to protect the UK’s interests,” the former prime minister added. George Osborne also issued a stark warning to Theresa May at the BCC’s annual conference about the risks of leaving the European Union without a trade deal, saying that it would be the biggest act of protectionism in British history. The prime minister has made clear that reverting to higher, World Trade Organisation tariffs is her fallback option if she is unhappy with the terms offered by the rest of the EU, because “no deal is better than a bad deal”, and some Brexiters favour that option as promoting freer trade. But Osborne warned that “no amount of trade deals with New Zealand” would make up for the business that would be lost by plunging out of the EU on to World Trade Organisation tariffs. “Let’s make sure that we go on doing trade with our biggest export market, otherwise withdrawing from the single market will be the biggest act of protectionism in British history,” he told an audience of business leaders. However, Johnson used his speech to make clear that the government did not see the referendum result as a green light for protectionism. In the face of Osborne’s warning and calls by the US president, Donald Trump, for more protections, Johnson said his government was pro-trade and pro-globalisation. “When goods and services no longer cross borders then troops and tanks do so instead,” he said insisting that the UK would strike a good deal with the EU and be more open to the rest of the world. He joked about Britain selling boomerangs to Australia, sand to Saudi Arabia, tea to China, wine to Italy and Nigel Farage to America. |