Farage Calls for Election Pact with Johnson to ‘Smash’ Labour and Deliver Brexit

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JUNE 30: Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage addresses supporters from
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Victoria Friedman

Nigel Farage has said that the Brexit Party and the Conservatives could “smash” Labour in a snap election, but only if Boris Johnson agreed to an election pact.

Mr Farage revived the possibility of a pact between his party and the Tories — which Johnson has ruled out — stating that the only way new prime minister can live up to his word to deliver Brexit by Halloween is to call a snap election in the autumn in order to clear out the Remainer-dominated House of Commons.

Speaking to the BBC Mr Farage said, however, that he has no faith in the Tories to honour their pledges.

“I don’t believe a single word the Conservative Party tell us,” Mr Farage said. “Theresa May told us 108 times we were leaving on March 29th and we didn’t, so just because Boris says we’re leaving on the 31st of October doesn’t mean we’re going to.”

“But if Boris was genuine about this… the only way this can now be done is to change the arithmetic in the House of Commons by fighting a General Election” and agreeing an “electoral pact” he added.

Such an electoral pact would be where the two parties would agree to not field candidates in certain constituencies to prevent splitting the vote and allowing either the Tories or Brexit Party to defeating a pro-Remain party like Labour or the Liberal Democrats.

“There is a possibility that an electoral pact could be forged, but we would need to believe them and at the moment that’s not very easy,” Mr Farage said.

His comments follow on from his call to Mr Johnson to accept the “inescapable truth” and hold a snap election before Brexit day. Currently, the majority in parliament of the Conservative Party and the DUP is just two, and might be reduced to one following a by-election in Brecon and Radnorshire on August 1st.

“For this strategy to work, he will need the support of the Brexit Party,” Mr Farage wrote in The Telegraph, but expressed doubt over Mr Johnson’s commitment, remarking that he “flip-flops” on HS2, the third runway at Heathrow, and immigration.

“Even on Brexit, he was very late to the cause,” Mr Farage wrote. “He will have a lot of convincing to do to persuade us that an early election will lead to a clean-break Brexit on 31 October.

“If he is able to convince us, then together we would electorally smash the Labour Party, he would assume a big working majority, and he would go down as one of the great leaders in British history. All this is possible, but is Boris Johnson brave enough?”

U.S. President Donald Trump backed a pact between the Tories and Brexit Party, saying on Tuesday: “I know [Nigel Farage is] going to work well with Boris, they are going to do some great things.”

President Trump, an acquaintance of Leave architecture Nigel Farage and supporter of Brexit, congratulated Mr Johnson on his election victory on Tuesday, saying: “Congratulations to Boris Johnson on becoming the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He will be great!”

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