Former London mayor Boris Johnson, runaway bookmakers’ favourite to become Britain’s Prime Minister, abruptly pulled out of the race on Thursday in a shock announcement less than a week after leading the campaign to pull the country out of the EU.
Mr. Johnson’s announcement, to audible gasps from a roomful of journalists and supporters, was the biggest political surprise since Prime Minister David Cameron quit on Friday, the morning after losing the referendum on British membership in the bloc. Mr. Johnson’s withdrawal makes Theresa May, the Interior Minister who backed Remain, the new favourite to succeed Mr. Cameron.
She announced her own candidacy earlier on Thursday, promising to deliver the EU withdrawal voters had demanded, despite having campaigned for the other side. “Brexit means Brexit,” she told a news conference. “The campaign was fought, the vote was held, turnout was high and the public gave their verdict. There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door and no second referendum.”
Surprise decision
Mr. Johnson, whose support of the Leave cause was widely seen as delivering its victory, saw his bid suddenly crumble after his Brexit campaign ally, Justice Secretary Michael Gove, withdrew his backing and announced his own leadership bid.
“I must tell you, my friends, you who have waited faithfully for the punchline of this speech, that having consulted colleagues and in view of the circumstances in Parliament, I have concluded that person cannot be me,” Mr. Johnson said at the news conference in a London luxury hotel.
Supporters in Parliament, who had gathered expecting to hear him formally announce his candidacy, were left stunned.
Mr. Gove, a close friend of Mr. Cameron’s despite differences with the Prime Minister over Europe, had previously said he would back Mr. Johnson.
But in an article in the Spectator magazine on Thursday, Mr. Gove wrote that he had come “reluctantly, to the conclusion that Boris cannot provide the leadership or build the team for the task ahead”.
Conservative lawmakers said Mr. Johnson may have been undone by supporters of Mr. Cameron exacting revenge for his decision to defy the Prime Minister and back the Leave campaign.
“He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword,” said one lawmaker, describing internal party conflict on condition of anonymity. The lawmaker told Reuters that Mr. Johnson had realised his bid would fail after lawmakers defected from his campaign overnight.
Divided party
Mr. Johnson became the latest political casualty of a civil war in the ruling party unleashed by Mr. Cameron’s decision to hold the referendum on membership in the EU, an issue that divided the Conservatives for decades and now divides the country.
Mr. Johnson, known for a jokey public persona and a mop of unkempt blonde hair, became a popular national figure during eight years as London mayor, and used his charm to aid the Leave cause after deciding only late in the day to push for Brexit.
Several leading Conservatives questioned whether Mr. Johnson had the gravitas to run tough talks to mend the broken relationship with the EU and drive the country’s future on the global stage.
In an article in the Times newspaper, Ms. May took aim at Mr. Johnson’s persona by saying government was not “a game.”
‘Uncertainty to affect near-term growth outlook’
Uncertainty over Great Britain’s looming departure from the European Union will dampen near-term economic growth for the U.K. and the rest of Europe and affect output globally, a spokesman for the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday.
IMF chief spokesman Gerry Rice told a regular news briefing that market movements following last week’s vote, including for currencies, “were large but not excessively disorderly.”
Mr. Rice said central bankers should stand ready to act to add liquidity or reduce excess volatility if the uncertainty over Brexit threatens to further hurt global growth.
