Nigel Farage has made an unexpected U-turn by suggesting he would rather see Brexit delayed than leave the European Union with Boris Johnson’s freshly-minted deal.
The Brexit Party leader and ex-Ukip frontman has repeatedly made clear his anger at the prospect of an extension beyond October 31, having previously railled against the six-month delay agreed in April.
But after the prime minister struck an agreement with Brussels – which still needs the support of MPs in parliament – the politician most synonymous with leaving the EU was not having it.
Speaking to the BBC, the Brexit Party leader said: “It (the deal) binds us into so many other commitments on foreign policy, military policy – a list as long as your arm, and I frankly think it should be rejected.
“Would I rather accept a new European treaty that is, frankly, very bad for us, or would I prefer to have an extension, and a general election?
“I would always go for the latter option.
“I genuinely believe that a clean break and being able to be competitive is the absolute key to our future economic success. We cannot do that with this new treaty.”
He later defended the Benn Act – a law that would delay Brexit – as he hit out at Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission president, after he suggested there should be no further delay to the UK’s EU withdrawal.
The Benn Act decrees that Johnson must seek a further extension if no deal is agreed by parliament by October 19.
Farage tweeted: “So an unelected, retiring bureaucrat says: no extension, take this new treaty or just leave. He is overriding the Benn Act. The EU shows itself to be a thuggocracy – power without accountability. Appalling people.”
Naturally, social media piled in…led by, er, a meme from the former de facto deputy prime minister.