BORIS Johnson compared himself to the mythological Greek god who was cruelly punished for giving fire to mankind in a speech at the UN.
The PM suffered a setback yesterday in his mission to deliver Brexit when the Supreme Court ruled his UK Parliament shutdown was unlawful.
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But Boris came back fighting with a fiery speech on Tuesday in which he slammed some parliamentarians for wanting Brexit to “go on forever”.
He drew subtle comparisons between himself and culture hero Prometheus, who is credited with the creation of man from clay and who defies the gods by giving fire to mortals.
According to Greek myth, intelligent Prometheus was then punished by Zeus, who chained him to a rock and sent an eagle to peck out his liver every day for eternity.
“It is a trope as old as literature, that any scientific advance is punished by the Gods,” Boris told the UN General Assembly in New York.
“When Prometheus brought fire to mankind in a tube of fennel as you may remember.
“Zeus punished him by chaining him to a rock while his liver was pecked out by an eagle.
“And every time his liver regrew – the eagle came back and pecked it again.
“And this went on forever.
“A bit like the experience of Brexit in the UK…if some of our parliamentarians had their way.”
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His comment prompted laughter from the late-night crowd at the summit which was held more than three years after the UK voted to leave the EU.
“In fact it was a standard poetic practice to curse the person responsible for any scientific or technical breakthrough,” he added.
Although Boris avoided addressing the troubles facing him directly, the PM definitely made a point with his speech.
It came after judges yesterday said it was wrong to stop MPs carrying out duties in the run-up to the Brexit deadline on 31 October.
The PM said he “profoundly disagreed” with the ruling but would “respect” it.
BORIS DEMANDS AN ELECTION
Boris also demanded a general election to give voters the final say on Brexit after the Supreme Court ruling.
MPs are due back in the House of Commons on Wednesday but Jeremy Corbyn has said the Labour Party won’t back a snap poll.
Addressing whether the UK should go to the polls he said: “Jeremy Corbyn is talking out of the back of his neck and we should have an election.”
A Government source said Boris had spoken to the Queen “after the verdict” but would not say whether he apologised to her.
Boris is currently in New York for a UN summit but is due back in the UK this morning.
He used to rest of his speech at the UN to warn about the perils of technology.
LONDON TECH SUMMIT
But he says that with the right approach, humanity can deliver itself to a brighter future.
Boris said he was “profoundly optimistic” about technology’s future if humanity finds “the right balance between freedom and control.”
The PM also invited world leaders for a technology summit in London next year.
Earlier in a meet with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, Boris called for the immediate release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and other dual nationals imprisoned in Iran.
He also “raised our deep concern about Iran’s destabilising activity in the region, including the attacks on the Aramco oil facilities, and insisted this must stop,” a spokesperson said.
He stressed support for the Iran nuclear deal and the need for dialogue, “including on a comprehensive successor deal.”
What does the ruling mean for Brexit – and what happens next?
What now?
Effectively Parliament is no longer shut down. It means MPs can go back to Parliament tomorrow morning from 11.30, Speaker John Bercow said today.
Technically as there is no Commons business, MPs do not have to be there, and there are no crunch votes scheduled at the moment.
Mr Bercow said that there will be no PMQs on Wednesday as there normally is, but there will be time for urgent questions from MPs, and they will be able to table emergency debates too.
That could pave the way for Remainers to take control of Parliament once again and start wrecking Brexit again.
The Labour boss Jeremy Corbyn has brought forward his keynote speech to this afternoon so he can race back to Westminster in time.
Can Boris Johnson resign?
Boris has said he WONT quit as PM and is determined to stay in post and deliver Brexit
Boris can technically resign, but he can’t leave without putting someone in his place. There has to be a PM in office at all times.
Boris could talk to the Queen and advise that someone else take over – such as Jeremy Corbyn or a senior MP like Ken Clarke or Harriet Harman.
Will there be an election?
Boris has repeatedly called for an election to break the Brexit deadlock and try and win a majority in Parliament to force through his Brexit plans.
After he sacked 21 Tory rebels he effectively has no majority and has no hope of getting a deal – or any other law – through Parliament unless Labour or other rebels join forces with him.
The current position in Parliament is unsustainable and an election is on the cards – it’s just a question of when.
Mr Corbyn and other opposition parties repeatedly voted against an election earlier this month.
They wanted to wait until Boris was forced to seek an extension to Article 50 first, which would delay Brexit for a third time.
Only after that will they back an election, because if one is called before they fear Boris could take Britain out of the EU without a deal during the campaign.
Boris needs two thirds of MPs to vote for an election before one is called.
Will he face a vote of no confidence?
MPs could try and force Boris Johnson out of office with a vote of no confidence.
With Westminster in so much chaos, it’s hard to see how he would win one.
If he loses, then he would have 14 days to try and win back MPs’ support in the Commons.
If he couldn’t do that, then an election is called automatically.
But there has to be 25 days at least of campaigning before voting day.
MPs would not want to risk crashing out of the EU without a deal during an election campaign – and could hold back from trying to boot Boris out for now.
What about Brexit?
Brexit is still set to take place at the end of October as planned.
But Remainers passed a new law earlier this month which would force the PM to seek a third Brexit extension if he hasn’t got a deal in place.
Boris has repeatedly saying he won’t ask for another delay, but hasn’t said what he will do instead.
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