EU chief urges Brussels refresher for Brexit champ Boris

Boris Johnson, the fop-haired former mayor of London who is spearheading the drive for Bri
AFP

Ise-Shima (Japan) (AFP) – Flamboyant Brexit campaigner Boris Johnson needs to get to Brussels for a refresher on how the European Union works, a top bloc official said Thursday.

Johnson, the fop-haired former mayor of London who is spearheading the drive for Britain to leave the EU in June’s referendum, raised hackles this month by saying the 28-nation grouping was behaving like Adolf Hitler.

“Boris Johnson spent part of his life in Brussels,” European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told reporters on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Japan.

“It’s time for him to come back to Brussels, in order to check if everything he’s telling the British people is in line with reality,” Juncker added. 

“I don’t think so, so he would be welcome in Brussels at any time.”

The vote on June 23 has pitched Johnson against his long-term foe and former schoolmate, Prime Minister David Cameron, who is campaigning for Britain to stay in the EU.

The British Treasury, the Bank of England, the International Monetary Fund and US President Barack Obama have all warned of negative economic consequences of a so-called Brexit.

A series of recent British polls suggest a widening lead for supporters of continued EU membership, with less than a month to go before the crucial in-out vote.

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