Boris Johnson has told senior Conservatives that if they are to serve in his cabinet then they will have to sign up to leaving the EU on October 31, even if that means a no-deal exit.
The frontrunner to become Tory leader and the next UK prime minister said in an interview he wanted a “broad range” of MPs in his top team. But he added that his most senior ministers “would have to be reconciled” with the possibility of a no-deal Brexit, even though that was only a “very, very, very small possibility”.
“I don’t think it will happen but they would have to be reconciled to it,” he told the ConservativeHome website.
His comments suggest that some current cabinet ministers would be unlikely to serve under him, including Amber Rudd, Greg Clark, David Gauke and Rory Stewart, all of whom oppose a no-deal exit.
Mr Johnson said this week that leaving on October 31 would be a “do or die” moment, hinting that if he failed he might have to resign as prime minister.
His remarks are aimed at the Conservative party’s 160,000 members, who will decide the winner of the leadership race by July 23, and increasingly favour leaving the EU without any agreement in place with Brussels.
His interview came as Theresa May, the outgoing prime minister, issued an indirect warning to Mr Johnson to avoid leaving without a deal and without the backing of parliament.
Mrs May said: “What I hope and expect is that my successor will be able to put before parliament proposals that will enable us to deliver on the vote of the British people in a way that will be good for the UK.”
She also played down the prospects of Brussels offering a better deal, adding: “The EU has made its position clear. We negotiated a good deal with the EU.”
Mr Johnson said he wanted a “sensible” deal with Brussels to give MPs an opportunity to avoid no deal. He added that the alternative was “voting it down, and then enraging the electorate”.
At the same time pro-Remain MPs are drawing up a plan to hold back funding from Whitehall departments if the next prime minister tries to take Britain out of the EU without a deal.
Dominic Grieve, a Tory MP, has joined forces with Labour’s Margaret Beckett to draw up the plan to try to thwart a disorderly Brexit.
The pair have put forward an amendment to the routine government finance legislation known as “estimates” which takes place next week. If MPs back the move, it would withhold funding from certain Whitehall departments if there is a no-deal Brexit without parliament’s approval.
The move is the latest in a series of House of Commons skirmishes as MPs try to use various archaic devices to prevent a no-deal Brexit. Earlier this month Labour was thwarted in an attempt to take control of the order paper to debate a mechanism to stop a no-deal Brexit. But MPs are determined to explore various options in order to tie the hands of a Eurosceptic prime minister.
Next week’s “estimates” vote on Tuesday is on the budgets for education, international aid, work and pensions, and housing. If the Grieve-Beckett amendment is passed the departments would not be able to receive their money unless the Commons has either ratified a Brexit deal or consented to leaving without one.
