Boris Johnson says his secret weapon to solve the Brexit crisis is ‘positive energy’

Speaking to talkRADIO, the favourite to be the next prime minister was asked how he planned to succeed where Theresa May failed, in breaking the impasse to Brexit.

In his answer, he explained: “I think a bit of positive energy would help, frankly. I’ve never seen such a morosity and gloom from a government.

“For three years we’ve been sitting around wrapped in defeatism telling the British public that they can’t do this or that.

“It’s pathetic, it’s absolutely pathetic.”

Asked what happens if the positive energy does not work, what would be his plan B, Johnson said the problem was that “we haven’t even really wanted to come out.”

He continued: “Don’t forget. We haven’t even really wanted to come out. That’s the whole, that’s the, the heart of the problem. What we’ve been doing is we’ve been creating our own incarcerate, our in prison. The backstop, the customs union and the single market are all basically designed to keep us in.”

It isn’t the first time he’s used the claim that “positive energy” was the key to solving Brexit.

Speaking to the BBC during an interview with Laura Kuenssberg he also used the term.

He said: “What’s changed now is that there is a real positive energy about getting it done.

“I think on both sides of the channel there’s an understanding that we have to come out, but clearly parliament has voted three times against the backstop arrangements that you rightly describe.”

It has led to Jeremy Hunt backer Amber Rudd criticising his lack of detail on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

She said: “This is an incredibly difficult situation.

“Boris needs to explain how he will deal with both sides of the Conservative Party that have concerns and try and break the impasse with the European Union.

“Enthusiasm and optimism is not sufficient.”