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Bloomberg
In the coffee shops of Britain’s parliament, the political conversation has already turned to the question that will define the country’s immediate future: Can Boris Johnson be stopped from pursuing a no-deal Brexit?
The options under discussion for Conservative politicians who want to avoid a no-deal split from the European Union are dramatic. They include quitting the party and mounting a rebellion to bring down the government.
The contest to succeed Theresa May as prime minister has seen a hardening of rhetoric around leaving the EU. Johnson and his rival to be prime minister, Jeremy Hunt, argue that only by threatening to leave the EU without an agreement can Britain get a good deal.
Johnson remains the front-runner to be the next PM, though he has raised new questions about his temperament.
The fear among some members of parliament is that Johnson, in particular, will find himself boxed into a corner where he has to carry out his threat. That’s why politicians who
oppose a no-deal Brexit, from the cabinet down, are bracing themselves for battle.
There has been talk of a vote of no-confidence in the government, with the idea floated even of doing it as soon as Johnson takes office in late July. This is a “nuclear option†that could destroy Johnson’s administration as soon as it is formed, leading to a general election.
Any Conservative MP supporting a no-confidence vote would be expelled from the party and forbidden from standing as a Tory candidate, effectively ending their careers. Yet one veteran Conservative observed privately that he was ready to do it if necessary to avoid the economic disaster of a no-deal Brexit.
Most no-deal opponents argue that such a radical move would not be necessary.
Instead, they plan to seize control of the parliamentary agenda, putting them in charge of the draft laws and motions that are debated and voted on — matters that the government of the day usually decides.
There’s no formal mechanism for this to happen, but officials point to the Standing Order 24 in the parliamentary rule book, which lets the opposition force an emergency debate.
Parliamentary officials expect Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow to allow this rule to be used in an unprecedented way to set aside a whole day for debate. That day would give Johnson’s opponents a chance to pass a law blocking a no-deal Brexit. Supporters of this plan are confident it would work. Rory Stewart, who ran for the party leadership but was knocked out, told journalists that “nearly 100 of my colleagues†would vote to prevent a move to leave the EU without a deal.
Johnson’s brush with police puts leadership bid in turmoil
Bloomberg
Boris Johnson’s bid to become the UK’s next prime minister was thrown into turmoil after an argument with his partner prompted police to visit his London residence.
Officers were called to the home Johnson shares with Carrie Symonds shortly, six hours after he was confirmed as the front-runner in the race to succeed Theresa May.
Police said they found no cause for action as both Johnson and Symonds were safe and well after a neighbour raised concerns for her safety.
But the incident dominated UK newspapers and threatened to damage Johnson’s campaign at a critical time in the Conservative Party leadership contest.
The front-runner is set to face his first public questions over the episode in front of an audience of Tory party
members. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, his only remaining rival in the contest, will also appear at the event in Birmingham, London.