Brussels to 'hunt' Britain if Goverment repeats key May mistake - 'We'd be on the run'
THE European Union could "hunt Britain down" if the British Government sought to snatch a new extension to the Brexit deadline, Brexiteer Bernard Jenkin has claimed.
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Bernard Jenkin suggested a new request to delay the Brexit deadline would put Britain "on the run" and lock the country on a perpetual extension of the withdrawal process. The British Government already postponed Britain's exit from the European Union twice and Brexiteers have voiced concerns over the political risks of not leaving on time yet again. Speaking to talkRADIO, Mr Jenkin said: "The minute you say ‘Oh well, we might extend again’ it means you’re on the run.
"It means that the EU is going to hunt you down to that deadline and then over that deadline and we’ll finish up extending again."
He added: "That’s what happened to Theresa May. She finished up on the run from the EU."
EU leaders have also expressed fears Brexit could be prolonged again in October, with French President Emmanuel Macron warning a new extension could only be agreed if the British Government decided to hold a new referendum or a general election.
Mr Macron earlier this month said: "I think this is the final, final deadline because I don't want to have the new commission and this new executive to deal with this.
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"I do believe we now have to implement the British people's decision. Except if the British people themselves decide something else.
"It's feasible if we have the perspective of either a new referendum or a totally new scheme which would be acceptable for the 27 EU states and our negotiator."
Tory leadership frontrunner Boris Johnson on Tuesday challenged fellow contestant Jeremy Hunt to commit to delivering Brexit by October 31.
Mr Johnson said the Government had "dithered and failed to carry out that one big instruction from the British people" as he insisted whoever becomes the new Prime Minister "must not kick the can down the road again."
He wrote: "The British people have had enough of being left in limbo. So both of us have a responsibility to provide clarity on exactly when we believe the UK should leave the EU.
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"For my part, I have been clear that, if I'm elected leader, we will leave on 31 October with or without a deal. Will you join me in this commitment to leave on 31 October come what may?
If you will not, voters deserve to know what alternative deadline you will set. What would you consider to be an acceptable delay? Would it be the end of this year, or will you extend our EU membership into 2020? At what point will you decide that enough is enough?
The former Foreign Secretary added: "If we kick the can, we will kick the bucket as a party. Leaving on 31 October – with no 'ifs,' 'buts' or 'maybes' – is the only way to restore the trust in our democracy. Being ready to do so is the best way to convince our European friends that we are serious in these negotiations and to get a better deal."
Mr Hunt hit back at his predecessor’s letter, calling it a “fake deadline” which - if adhered to - could lead to a general election which would hand power to Labour and derail Brexit altogether.
On Wednesday, the last two remaining contenders to succeed Theresa May faced the scrutiny of party members in the first-ever Tory live hustings.
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During the online confrontation, Mr Hunt said he will not "provoke" a general election without having delivered Brexit - otherwise the party would be destroyed and Jeremy Hunt would get into Downing Street.
He said: “My absolute commitment is to not provoke a general election before we have left.”
He also claimed the only way to win back Tory voters who chose the Brexit Party at the European elections is to deliver Brexit.
The party took a drubbing at the European Parliament poll, losing 15 of the 19 seats Conservative candidates had secured in the previous election in 2014.
Mr Hunt explained he will deliver a no deal Brexit if that's the only option left - but he would ask for an extension if by October there is a deal almost in place.
He said: “I will leave without a deal, but I will do so with a heavy heart.”