Jacob Rees-Mogg addresses the media after submitting a letter of no confidence in Prime Minister Theresa May (Photo: Getty)
Jacob Rees-Mogg says Boris Johnson should be next PM and says he would negotiate better Brexit deal than Theresa May’s Chequers ‘muddle’
Arlene Foster and Boris Johnson.
Composite: Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye
Boris Johnson warned on Saturday that Britain was “on the verge of making a historic mistake”, as Theresa May arrived in Brussels to sign a Brexit deal that cabinet ministers believe will soon be blocked by parliament.
The influential backbencher said the former Foreign Secretary is ‘absolutely first class’ – but he added ‘there is no vacancy’ in Number 10 for him to fillBy Alain Tolhurst5th September 2018, 3:44 pmUpdated: 5th September 2018, 4:20 pmPlay Video
JACOB Rees-Mogg says Boris Johnson should be the next Prime Minister and says he would negotiate a better Brexit deal than Theresa May’s Chequers “muddle”.
The influential backbencher said the former Foreign Secretary is “absolutely first class” – but he added “there is no vacancy” in Number 10 for him to fill.
Mr Rees-Mogg also blasted calls for a second referendum in a phone-in on LBC, calling it “a singularly silly idea”.
He was asked by a listener to respond to a poll by the radio station suggesting Brits would prefer Mr Johnson to Mrs May to deliver a so-called “real Brexit”.
The MP for North East Somerset said: “Well, two years ago in the Conservative Party leadership campaign, I supported Boris Johnson because I thought it would deliver Brexit extraordinarily well
“I haven’t seen anything that would cause me to change my mind on that.”
He added: “I think that had he become Prime Minister we would have negotiated from a greater position of strength, and would be heading towards a clearer and cleaner Brexit rather than the muddle of Chequers.
“So I have the highest regard for Boris Johnson, but there is no vacancy.”
He wouldn’t be pushed for an answer if there was, eventually adding: “Look, I think Boris is absolutely first class, but there is no vacancy.”
But he agreed with Mr Johnson’s column this week claiming the PM was not even trying to get a proper Brexit, saying: “Yeah, I couldn’t put it better myself.”
However he said Mrs May has “a future” in Downing Street, adding: “Look, I disagree with her on a policy, a major area of policy.
“But that doesn’t mean I don’t think she doesn’t have great strengths as a leader.”
He went on to say: “I think that Chequers need to be got rid of, ‘chucked’, in the Vogue phrase, because nobody wants it, and it doesn’t work from the British point of view.”
Mr Rees-Mogg rejected the idea he was afraid of a “People’s Vote” on the final deal, saying: “We’ve already had three votes on this.Theresa May ‘is a Remainer who has remained a Remainer’ says Jacob Rees-Mogg as he blasts her Brexit plan