Johnson Says He Will Find It Hard To Back Sunak's Brexit Deal

Rishi Sunak's hopes of ending years of Brexit infighting with a revised deal for Northern Ireland suffered a double blow as Boris Johnson came out against the plan while pressure mounted within the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) to reject it.

- Peter Walker Lisa O’Carroll

In his first public comments since the Windsor framework was unveiled on Monday, Johnson used a speech to a conference in London to say he would find it "very difficult" to back the plan, arguing it would stifle the UK economically.

While Johnson's opposition was expected, and the former prime minister did not explicitly say he would vote against the new protocol when it reaches the Commons, his careful unpicking of a policy he said would yoke the UK to European-style economic orthodoxy will strike a chord with fellow Tory Brexiters.

"We must be clear about what is really going on here. This is not about the UK taking back control," he said of Sunak's plan. "This is the EU graciously unbending to allow us to do what we want in our own country, not by our laws, but by theirs."