Brexit: Boris Johnson claims there is 'bags of time' for EU to compromise on deal

With 84 days until exit day, PM is confident Brussels will show 'common sense'

Boris Johnson has claimed there is "bags of time" for the EU to compromise on a Brexit deal ahead of the Halloween deadline.

With just 84 days until exit day, the prime minister said he was confident that Brussels would show "common sense" and agree to strip the controversial Irish backstop from the withdrawal agreement.

The EU has repeatedly said it will not reopen the Brexit deal negotiated by Theresa May, which has been overwhelmingly rejected by parliament several times.

Brexit talks ground to a complete halt, after Mr Johnson refused to go to Brussels until the EU was ready to discuss removing the backstop, which acts an insurance against a hard border on the island of Ireland.

He told the BBC: "I very much hope that our friends and partners will show common sense and that they will compromise...I’m sure there is compromise to be found and as we’ve made clear, the backstop just doesn’t work for a proud democracy like the UK.

"We don’t want to go down that route.

"But there’s every possibility for the EU to show flexibility. There’s bags of time for them to do it and I’m confident they will."

Mr Johnson said the backstop would turn the UK into a "satellite state" but insisted a good deal could be done once it was removed.

The government has been accused of playing a "blame game" with Brussels after Michael Gove claimed the EU that was refusing to negotiate with Britain.

The cabinet office minister, who is heading up no-deal preparations, said it was “wrong and sad” that the EU did not want to talk.

But his comments came after the European Commission confirmed that Jean-Claude Juncker had made overtures to London, saying his team are available for talks by phone or in person to discuss the UK position.

Downing Street has made it clear that Mr Johnson wants to leave the UK on 31 October by whatever means necessary, prompting alarm amongst moderate MPs.

His top aide, Dominic Cummings, reportedly told colleagues that Mr Johnson would not need to resign if he lost a confidence vote, most likely tabled by Labour when parliament returns from recess in September.

Downing Street aides have suggested the poll could take place days after Brexit, if Mr Johnson is forced to go to the country by a no-confidence vote. This would mean the UK would crash out of the EU during the election campaign.

Asked if there were any circumstances in which he would hold a general election before 31 October, Mr Johnson said: "What they want to see now is the politicians they returned to Westminster - virtually all of whom promised to uphold that mandate to come out of the EU - what they want to do is see them do exactly that and leave the EU on 31 October."