Get on with Brexit, Boris: Tory MPs' plea to Johnson as new Prime Minister
Boris Johnson has been urged to “get Brexit done” as he prepared to enter Number 10 as Britain’s new Prime Minister.
He won the Tory leadership election with ease, defeating Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt with 66 per cent of the vote having been backed by 92,153 party members to his opponent’s 46,656.
Mr Johnson was due to be appointed Prime Minister today by the Queen following the official resignation of Theresa May.
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Speaking after his victory, Mr Johnson said he would “energise” the party and insisted he would make good on his pledges to unite the Conservative Party and deliver Brexit “do or die”.
And Tory MPs in the Black Country and Staffordshire have today backed him to take Britain out of the EU by October 31 – a promise repeatedly made by Mr Johnson during his leadership campaign.
Stone MP Sir Bill Cash was among those to hail “a new era” for the party under a leader who understood the “need for Britain to self-govern”.
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He said: “The big margin of 66 per cent is very important. It gives him the authority required to take the country out of the EU by October 31.
"I’m absolutely delighted because for my whole time in Parliament I have wanted us to have a Prime Minister who will deliver a self-governing democracy.
“We can now look forward to making our own decisions once we are out of the EU, which let’s not forget is what the country asked us to do.
“We don’t want a Marxist Corbyn in charge and we certainly don’t want to be governed by the EU.”
Aldridge-Brownhills MP Wendy Morton said Mr Johnson would bring “real energy, vision and determination” to the role of PM and added: “Now he must get on and deliver Brexit, and importantly get it done by October 31.
“Let’s deliver for the West Midlands and unite the country as we do so.”
Walsall North MP Eddie Hughes, who backed Mr Johnson in the leadership campaign, said the new PM would show “the determination needed” to deliver Brexit that was lacking in his predecessor.
“He’s more personable and genuinely believes in Brexit, so although we should not underestimate the difficulty of the task, I believe he is in a good position to get it done.
“Even though there is only a short amount of time until the deadline, it is certainly not insurmountable. If anyone is going to do it, then Boris is the man. The future is looking bright.”
Tory councillors in the Black Country also welcomed the new PM, with Wolverhampton Council’s opposition leader Wendy Thompson claiming Mr Johnson would bring “a positive” view of Britain.
“I think he will make us all feel jolly, he is full of aspirations for Britain and I think people will be extremely hopeful,” said Mrs Thompson, who voted for Mr Johnson.
“He has got enormous problems to face – I don’t envy him – but I do hope as he did with the Mayor of London role, he will use that experience and bring lots of good things.”
She added that Mr Johnson’s experience of living in the Black Country in the 1980s,when he worked for the Express & Star, would mean he would be likely to support the West Midlands.
Outgoing PM Mrs May offered her congratulations to Mr Johnson but stressed that he should work “to deliver a Brexit that works for the whole UK” – a clear warning against a no-deal departure.
The possibility of such an outcome had already led to a series of ministerial departures prior to Mr Johnson’s victory, including Stourbridge MP and former Digital Minister Margot James.
She has today called for Brexit to be handled “effectively” so the party could get on with the crucial job of “delivering the tenets of One Nation Conservatism”.
Labour MPs in the Black Country have raised concerns over Mr Johnson’s election, with Wolverhampton South East MP Pat McFadden saying it would “test” and possibly destroy “the theory that the only problem with Brexit was that the people in charge of it were
not true believers”.
Mr Johnson was expected to appoint his cabinet imminently.
