The day started poorly for the Conservatives. Clearly irritated by Boris Johnson’s determination to dodge an interview with him, Andrew Neil threw down the gauntlet on Thursday evening and the clip went viral throughour friday. Noting that Johnson was the first ever party leader to shirk these interviews Neil declared an interview was still possible the theme of which would be “trust”. Given that “so many” see Johnson as “untrustworthy” would he really deliver on the promises he had made in the manifesto. Given that Johnson claiming he thought “the truth matters” drew laughter in the last leader’s debate this is a shot that hits home.
Johnson was once editor of the Spectator, before leaving his post to pursue new opportunities. Andrew Neil was then and remains now chairman of the Spectator magazine.
The message that Johnson cannot be trusted seems to be the Labour line as well. Last week Labour handed out leaked documents that they claimed showed Johnson had lied about his willingness to protect the NHS in any trade deal with the USA. Today, deploying this strategy once more, Corbyn unveiled leaked government documents assessing Brexit’s impact on Northern Ireland. These, Corbyn claimed, showed that Johnson had lied once again. There would indeed be customs checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland despite Johnson’s promises otherwise.
