Downing Street plans General Election one week after No Deal Brexit in bid to thwart Remainer MPs
DOWNING Street is drawing up plans for a General Election a week after a No Deal Brexit.
PM Boris Johnson’s top aides believe they could trigger a poll next month — even if Remainer MPs attempt to topple the Government.
They could then take Britain out of the EU on October 31 before new MPs are elected to stop him.
Brits would vote days later and, with the referendum result delivered, aides believe the Tories would see off Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party threat to secure a resounding victory and increase their majority.
Expectations were raised yesterday as almost £2billion was promised for NHS hospitals in Labour and Leave-backing areas of England and the new Tory party chairman refused to rule out an early poll.
Asked on Sky News if he could say with a straight face that there would be no election this year, James Cleverly replied: “We are not going to initiate a general election.”
ELECTION SPECULATION
Challenged that it felt “election-y” in Westminster, he said: “What we’ve got is a new Prime Minister who during the leadership campaign made a number of explicit commitments and he is setting about delivering on those commitments.”
Labour’s health spokesman Jonathan Ashworth said yesterday’s NHS funding announcement raised speculation that an election could come “very soon”.
Remainer Dominic Grieve said it was still possible to bring down the Government.
Remainer MPs can table a no-confidence vote after Parliament returns on September 3. If they won and no alternative government could not be formed in 14 days, an election is automatically triggered.
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However, BoJo’s Vote Leave guru Dominic Cummings says Remainers can no longer halt Brexit.
He is said to believe EU leaders wrongly think the Government is bluffing, declaring: “They don’t realise that if there is a no-confidence vote in September or October, we’ll call an election and leave anyway.”
Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay, meanwhile, warned EU leaders to give their chief negotiator Michel Barnier the mandate to re-broker an agreement, otherwise No Deal “is coming down the tracks”.
PIKACHU'S BOJO BOOST
BORIS Johnson’s hopes of a post-Brexit deal with America have been given a boost by Pokemon cartoon character Pikachu.
The firm behind Pokemon wants Donald Trump, right, to agree a free trade agreement that lets UK tech experts work in its US offices for years without a visa.
The proposal is in an official submission to a US trade department consultation on a future deal with Britain.
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