Is Boris finished? Prime Minister expected to lose crunch Queen’s Speech next week
BORIS JOHNSON is expected to lose a vote next week on his Queen’s Speech according to reports in a move that is likely to prompt calls for him to resign.
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The Government will outline its domestic policy programme in the first Queen’s Speech since June 2017. However according to The Sunday Telegraph Ministers expect it to be voted down by the House of Commons.
Independent MPs are expected to join opposition parties to defeat Mr Johnson.
However there is speculation many of the 21 Tory rebels, who were expelled from their party, will vote with the Government.
Mr Johnson has vowed to use his Queen’s Speech to deliver “a bold and ambitious domestic legislative agenda for the renewal of our country after Brexit”.
The speech is followed by a vote on its content after five days of debate.
Traditionally this is treated as a confidence vote in the Government, meaning the Prime Minister will come under pressure if it is lost.
The last Prime Minister to lose a Queen’s Speech vote, Stanley Baldwin in January 1924, resigned shortly afterwards.
However Downing Street is likely to argue that the circumstances are exceptional, as Parliament is blocking Mr Johnson’s efforts to call a general election.
Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph a source close to the former Tory rebels insisted they would still vote with the Government commenting “this group are, at heart still conservatives”.
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They added the rebels “set out to stop a no deal, not to bring down the Government.
“So they are still focused on that aim and they would think carefully about doing anything that was not aligned with stopping no deal”.
It is unknown what position Rory Stewart, who has left the Conservative Party and announced plans to stand for Mayor of London, will take.
Sam Gyimah, the former Universities Minister, has since joined the Liberal Democrats meaning he may also vote against the Government.
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Mr Johnson has repeatedly vowed to take Britain out of the EU with or without a formal exit deal on October 31.
However last month Parliament passed a law forcing him to request an Article 50 extension unless it explicitly approves a no deal exit.
The Prime Minister is continuing to insist Brexit will take place on October 31, but its unclear how he will get around the new law.
Opposition parties are currently blocking a general election until after Mr Johnson’s requests a Brexit extension from the EU.
However if Mr Johnson is defeated next week it could increase pressure on opposition leaders to back a no confidence vote in the Prime Minister.
This would trigger a general election unless Jeremy Corbyn, or anyone else, was able to form an alternative Government.
The UK has put new Brexit proposals to the EU, which would keep Northern Ireland in a British customs union, but Brussels and Dublin have suggested it is insufficient.
Speaking on Saturday the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, insisted a no deal exit would be the UK’s choice.
He commented: “I want to be extremely clear.
“No deal will never be Europe’s choice. It would be – and note the conditional tense, because I hope still to find a deal – it would always be the UK’s choice, not ours.
“We’re ready for it, we’ve taken measures to protect our citizens and our businesses. But we do not want it.”
Taking to twitter Mr Johnson said: “New deal or no deal - but no delay.”