The United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called it quits on Monday after refusing to support a so-called soft Brexit from the European Union (EU).
Brexit Secretary David Davis also resigned hours earlier because he believes the U.K. is “giving away too much and too easily,” as did Brexit under-secretary Steve Baker, reported BBC.
A proposed deal constructed by U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May and her cabinet on Friday spurred the wave of resignations, reported The Guardian. Johnson reportedly called promoting the weak deal “polishing a turd,” according to The Guardian. (RELATED: Eighth Boy Rescued From Flooded Cave In Thailand, Witness Says)
Johnson’s “replacement will be announced shortly,” said a spokesperson for the prime minister. There is speculation that Johnson may attempt to gain May’s powerful position by getting enough members of Parliament to give votes of no confidence in her leadership, reported The Guardian.
Nigel Farage, a member of Parliament and former leader of the pro-Brexit U.K. Independence Party, is already tweeting about May leaving her post as prime minister.
“Now can we please get rid of the appalling [Theresa May] and get Brexit back on track,” he wrote on Twitter on Monday.
Bravo @BorisJohnson. Now can we please get rid of the appalling @theresa_may and get Brexit back on track.
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) July 9, 2018
May has already replaced the other hard Brexiters who quit. Member of Parliament (MP) and housing minister Dominic Raab will replace Davis as Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, reported BBC.
Davis, Raab and Johnson supported a hard Brexit during the 2016 referendum.
“In my view the inevitable consequence of the proposed policies will be to make the supposed control by Parliament illusory rather than real,” Davis wrote in his resignation letter.
The U.K. envisions leaving the EU on March 29, 2019, after over 45 years in the bloc. But negotiating the terms of Brexit is proving challenging, especially when it comes to trade. Davis expressed his disappointment that under May, the country may not keep its “manifesto commitment” to exit the Customs Union, which forces it to set external tariffs, and the Single Market, which heavily regulates goods that can move freely within the EU.
However, while speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, May maintained that the U.K. will leave the Customs Union and Single Market. She released a statement laying out the four steps of her Brexit model that she says will ensure a healthy economy on Friday. The government will release a paper with more detail on Thursday, reported The Guardian.
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