Boris Johnson warns only the Tories can ‘deliver Brexit’

Boris Johnson today warned that only the Tories can ‘deliver Brexit’ – as he pleaded with voters not to back Nigel Farage’s party in a crunch by-election on Thursday.

The PM moved to quash growing rumours of a pact with the Brexit Party, insisting that supporting them only helped Lib Dem efforts to ‘cancel Brexit’.

Speaking ahead of a visit to the constituency this afternoon, Mr Johnson said: ‘A vote for any party other than Conservatives pushes the Liberal Democrats one step closer to cancelling the referendum result.

‘The Brexit Party cannot deliver Brexit, only the Conservatives can.’

Defeat for the Conservatives in Brecon & Radnorshire this week would see the Government’s working majority in Parliament shrink to just one. The poll was triggered when the Tory MP was embroiled in an expenses scandal.

The Liberal Democrats are favourites to emerge victorious – but the result will be closely watched to see how much the Brexit vote is split by the Tories and Mr Farage’s candidate.

‘They have now got 29 members of the Brexit Party sitting in Strasbourg, not exactly full of the Ode To Joy,’ he said on Monday.

‘They are not going to want that situation to continue. There is big incentive on both sides to get this thing done, and we are going to come out, deal or no-deal, on October 31.’

Mr Johnson has flatly dismissed the prospect of a pact with the Brexit Party, while Mr Farage has said he would only entertain the idea if the Tories were committed to a clean break from Brussels.

However, many believe an arrangement is the only way to secure victory in an election.

The PM raised eyebrows yesterday when he praised the Brexit Party for their efforts to attack the EU.

On a visit to Scotland, Mr Johnson said the fact that so many of Mr Farage’s allies had been elected as MEPs would put extra pressure on Brussels to renegotiate a deal before the October deadline.

‘They have now got 29 members of the Brexit Party sitting in Strasbourg, not exactly full of the Ode To Joy,’ he said on Monday.

‘They are not going to want that situation to continue. There is big incentive on both sides to get this thing done, and we are going to come out, deal or no-deal, on October 31.’

Since entering No10, Mr Johnson has demanded Theresa May’s hated Irish backstop be removed from any potential Brexit deal.

Nigel Farage (pictured at the European Parliament earlier this month) has said he would only entertain the idea if the Tories were committed to a clean break from Brussels

He has also threatened to withhold some of all of the £39billion divorce bill agreed by Mrs May. 

There are currently 320 MPs who – on paper – would back the Government in a crunch vote in the House of Commons – 310 Tories and 10 members of the DUP.

The DUP agreed to support the Conservatives in certain key votes, such as confidence motions and Budgets, as part of a deal reached in the aftermath of the 2017 general election.

Set against this combined total of 320 MPs are 318 MPs from all other parties.

The seat of Brecon & Radnorshire is currently vacant, so whoever wins the by-election will increase by one either the Government’s tally of MPs or those of the opposition.

If the Lib Dems win the seat the opposition tally would increase from 318 to 319.

With the Tories and DUP unchanged on a combined total of 320, this would reduce the Government’s majority from two to one.

These totals do not include Sinn Fein’s seven MPs, who do not take their seats in the Commons, and the Speaker and three Deputy Speakers, who do not vote.

The Liberal Democrats need a swing of 9.8% to take the Welsh seat from the Conservatives.