Conservative MPs threaten to support Nigel Farage if Boris Johnson does not deliver Brexit in 100 days

BORIS Johnson has been warned he must deliver Brexit within 100 days or risk MPs deserting him.
Tories backing his leadership bid have bluntly told him they will quit if he fails to meet the Halloween deadline for leaving the EU.

A former minister said: “We’ve all invested heavily in backing Boris. But he has got to keep his word. If he lets us down, it’s over.”
The warning shot from hardline Brexiteers came as an exclusive Sun on Sunday poll put BoJo in an almost unassailable lead in the race for Number 10.
Some of the 120 MPs endorsing him last night made it clear his reign will be a short one if Britain stays in the EU beyond October 31. That gives him barely 100 days to strike a departure deal with EU chiefs after he takes office at the end of July.
The PM-in-waiting has been warned that patience is wearing thin among members of the European Research Group of Tory MPs. Several have even suggested they would defect to Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party.
One senior figure warned it could spell the end not only for Mr Johnson’s government but for the Conservatives. He said: “We’ve told him straight. If we don’t leave on schedule this time around, all bets are off.
“The donors will turn off the money taps, the members will be gone and MPs will walk too. We’ll be left with no choice but to join the Brexit Party. The country has put up with this for long enough. It’s three years since we voted to leave the EU and the big day keeps being put off.
“We’ve had so many broken promises from Theresa May and we are not going to be let down by Boris Johnson. We’ve told him in no uncertain terms, and I think he gets it.”
But yesterday EU chiefs dismissed their talks and bluster and insisted Mr Johnson is unlikely to take Britain out this year – even if he goes for no deal. Brussels officials predict he will ditch his promise to meet the October 31 deadline and seek an extension until the beginning of 2020.
Rudd-y tell
AMBER Rudd says she’d “still think carefully” before taking a lift home from Boris.
The Work and Pensions Secretary, right, also refused to answer when asked if she thought he would make a good PM. She told Sophy Ridge on Sky News: “I think Jeremy Hunt would make a better one.”
Mr Johnson will have exactly 100 days to deliver from the date he is expected to enter Number 10 on July 22. Most EU institutions are closed during the summer and the first summit is not until October 17 – two weeks before Brexit Day.
A Brussels insider said: “Even the boldest PM for a no deal will have to demonstrate he has had one serious try and that means an extension. Johnson will want to last more than ten days in power so will need to try getting it over the line. He, or whoever it is, will not be able to hide the need for an extension.”
The warning raises the stakes for BoJo on meeting his leadership pledges. MPs will this week put forward Mr Johnson as one of two challengers to enter a final ballot of grassroots members.
He is three times more popular than his nearest rival, according to our OnePoll survey, and only a disastrous gaffe can derail his bandwagon now.
Bojo won a further boost yesterday as Esther McVey – knocked out of the race on Thursday – announced that she and her nine supporters would be backing him. It brings to Commons support base to 123 – and gives him power to be his own man.
Betfair’s Katie Baylis said Boris Johnson is now “seemingly unbeatable” favourite at 2/11.
She added: “The battle looks to be for the second spot in the final two, between Jeremy Hunt and Rory Stewart.”
An ally said: “He’ll never be in a stronger position to pick his own team. Unlike in the 2016 contest, he doesn’t need to offer jobs to people to win them over. He’s already got more than enough backing to win the job. It means he can clear out the Cabinet and bring in his own people.”
The Sun On Sunday Says
BORIS Johnson is facing a stark ultimatum from hardline Tory MPs — deliver Brexit by Halloween or we join Nigel Farage.
As we reveal today, this startling threat has come from the European Research Group, some of his closest allies on the Tory backbenches.
So even before he has been handed the keys to Number 10 BoJo is getting a hard lesson in the brutal realities of power.
The former Foreign Secretary has himself acknowledged that the very survival of the Tory party depends on Britain quitting by October 31, deal or no deal.
In his own catch phrase, “If you kick the can, you kick the bucket”.
But he has also assured Remainer supporters that he believes that he can secure a bold new deal that will command sufficient support in the House.
Meanwhile, EU negotiators believe that there is not enough time for Britain to hit the deadline and are planning for yet another extension.
If Boris wins he will enter Downing Street on July 22, exactly 100 days before we are due to leave Europe.
So how will he reshape Theresa May’s failed deal and resolve the row over the Northern Ireland backstop in a time-frame which is tighter than his waistband used to be?
His answer to this question in Tuesday’s leadership debate will be fascinating.
Over to you, Boris. No pressure!
MOST READ IN POLITICS
But Mr Johnson has been warned he must appoint Leavers to the key Cabinet posts – Chancellor, Brexit Secretary, Commons leader and party chairman.
A leading Eurosceptic MP said: “He understands that his first big test is picking the right people for the important jobs. After that, they have to show us they mean business. And that means no messing around with the Northern Ireland border. Either negotiate a free trade agreement with the EU or leave with a managed no deal.
“If the EU don’t play ball he should cut corporation tax, give more cash to farmer and the motor industry and make sure we can compete hard outside the EU. Boris has talked the talk, soon he’ll have to show us he can walk the walk.”

BoJo: No short cut
TOP Tories have dismissed calls to ditch the leadership race and hand the crown to Boris Johnson.
Some members believe the contest is a foregone conclusion and want to hold a “coronation” to save time.
But ministers insisted it was a non-starter in the wake of the disaster which followed Theresa May being handed the job without a contest.
Home Secretary Sajid Javid said party members must get the chance to question and scrutinise the final two candidates.
Mr Johnson also dismissed the idea of being handed the keys to No10 without a members’ vote.
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Yeah Yeah Yeah! Heard it all before.
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