Boris Johnson ‘not a Tory but an English nationalist’ says former Conservative party chairman

A Tory grandee has branded Boris Johnson an “English nationalist” in a scathing radio interview.

The former Governor of Hong Kong and Chair of the Conservative Party, Chris Patten, took aim at the UK Prime Minister on Radio 4 Today, as he weighs up a no deal Brexit.

Patten, who has been highly critical of Brexit, said he “fears” for the country and that Boris Johnson is on a “runaway train of English exceptionalism.”

‘Depressed’

He said: “Look, we started off talking about a man of principle, Jimmy Lai, and you then start talking to me about Boris Johnson. I mean give me a break.

“What we’re seeing is Boris Johnson on this runaway train of English exceptionalism and heaven knows where it is going to take us in the end.

“I want the best for my country. I fear for what’s happening at the moment, and I fear for our reputation around the world, I fear for what will happen to us economically.

“I hope I’m wrong to feel so depressed about the outlook, but I don’t think that Mr Johnson is a conservative, I think he’s an English nationalist.

“All the things that conservatives used to believe in like standing up for the union, like not attacking our institutions like the judges, like believing in international cooperation, seem to have gone out the window.”