Contenders to lead Britain clash over parliament, Brexit and trust

Bloomberg

Jeremy Hunt said he would “100% not” suspend parliament to force through a no-deal Brexit, drawing a dividing line with Boris Johnson as the two men entered the last days of campaigning before Tory activists start voting for the UK’s next prime minister.
Hunt’s commitment — a direct challenge to Johnson — helped win the backing of former Foreign Secretary William Hague, who said his mastery of the machinery of government makes him best placed to deliver on his promises.
“We voted to leave the EU because we wanted to restore parliamentary democracy,” Hunt told Sky News. “You cannot, in that situation, force through a no-deal Brexit by closing down parliament. The British people would not accept that, including many people who voted for Brexit.”
Johnson, the front-runner in the contest to succeed Theresa May, has said he would keep open the possibility of shutting parliament if lawmakers try to block the UK leaving the bloc without agreement on October 31. A poll of Conservative Party members, who will receive their ballot papers for the election this week, found that 59 percent want the new prime minister to be ready to leave without a deal if negotiations fail.
Johnson said the threat of the Brexit Party taking seats from both the Conservatives and the opposition Labour Party in the next election will concentrate the minds of members of Parliament tempted to try to frustrate the split from the EU. The UK was originally scheduled to leave the bloc in March and it can’t be delayed again, he said.
“We’ve just got to believe in the common sense and wisdom of our elected representatives to get the thing done,” Johnson said in a conference call with party members.
“Politics has changed since March 29, and we all know we’re staring down the barrel of extinction if we don’t do it — and that applies to both sides of the argument.”