The tragedy is that Boris Johnson and Michael Gove are now vying together with others for leadership of the Tory party under a ticket that would take us out of Europe on the 31st of October come what may when in fact, rather than Theresa May or anyone else, they should have been leading the negotiations to take us out of Europe in the first place. What a twist of history that that did not happen immediately after the referendum, aided not least by what was seen at the time as Michael Gove’s treachery in relation to Boris, scuppering a partnership that might have delivered what was very much needed.
Now it is about no deal rather than a better deal which Europe says anyway it will not countenance and so it seems their moment in history has passed whilst it is still about to become, for one of them at least.
What irony and what a perverse turn of events. Is it too late for either of them to do something about the situation more constructively? The rhetoric is not helpful, certainly not from the Johnson camp. So can anything be done to recover what has been lost?
Boris Johnson would need to show more of an aptitude and an appetite for negotiation than presently seems to be the case. What is on offer instead seems to be rather reckless.
Fulfilling promises by being reckless is a very questionable virtue.
The Emporer's New Clothes 