Boris Johnson urges government to "chuck Chequers"

Speaking at a packed fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Johnson said the current Chequers Brexit plan was "a cheat".

He told delegates: "If we get this wrong, if we bottle Brexit now, believe me, the people of this country will find it hard to forgive.

"If we cheat the electorate – and Chequers is a cheat – we will escalate the sense of mistrust. We will give credence to those who cry betrayal, and I am afraid we will make it more likely the ultimate beneficiary of the Chequers deal will be the far right."

Instead, he argued, the government should revert to Theresa May's earlier Brexit proposals, dubbed the Lancaster House plan after a speech she gave in January 2017.

2Now is the time truly to take back control and make the elegant, dignified and grateful exit the country voted for," he said. "This is the moment – and there is time – to chuck Chequers."

He closed his speech: "I urge our friends in government to deliver what our people voted for, to back Theresa May in the best way possible, by softly, quietly and sensibly backing her original plan."

In a wide-ranging speech, Johnson also attacked Labour - accusing the opposition of being a "weaselly cabal" and a "Tony Benn tribute act" - ruled out a second referendum, called for tax cuts and said more homes needed to be built.