Brexiteer Johnson argued for staying in EU, writings reveal

LONDON: It was Boris Johnson’s support for the Vote Leave camp that helped tip the balance in its favour before the June 23 referendum, but the less known fact before

LONDON: It was Boris Johnson’s support for the Vote Leave camp that helped tip the balance in its favour before the June 23 referendum, but the less known fact before he declared his support to the camp is now out: he was almost equally committed to opposing it.

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Johnson made his pro-Brexit views known through television on February 21 and later explained his position in his widely read column in The Daily Telegraph the next day. He had also written a draft column that supported remaining in EU, but that he did not use.

The hitherto unpublished pro-EU column has now been included in a new book on the Brexit vote by the Sunday Times’ political editor, Tim Shipman. It has also been reproduced in the Sunday Times, prompting critics to call it typical of Johnson’s inconsistencies in politics.

In the ‘column’, Johnson writes that Britain’s continued membership of the EU would be a “boon for the world and for Europe”, and adds: “This is a market on our doorstep, ready for further exploitation by British firms. The membership fee seems rather small for all that access. Why are we so determined to turn our back on it?”

He also warned that Brexit would cause an “economic shock” and could lead to the breakup of the United Kingdom.