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The former Prime Minister's long-term adviser said opposition MPs were taking the British public for “fools” by believing they will blame current PM Boris Johnson if Brexit is delayed beyond October 31, and will be punished at the ballot box for their “dishonesty and duplicity”. Mr Timothy, who resigned from Downing Street along with fellow adviser Fiona Hill in the wake of the 2017 general election, which the pair are believed to have advised Mrs May to call, issued a damning assessment of the reluctance of opposition politicians to go the polls to break the Brexit deadlock.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Timothy said Parliament had “boxed in” Mr Johnson, and referred to former PM Tony Blair’s assessment that the current occupant of Number 10 “cannot move” without the consent of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. The strategy of opposition politicians, he suggested, was to stop Britain leaving the EU at the end of next month, thus forcing Mr Johnson to break his pledge to take the country out of the bloc “do or die” by then. Mr Timothy said they had reasoned Leave supporters would be “so enraged” they would refuse to vote Tory, thus letting in a Labour Government or Labour-led coalition, with the Liberal Democrats extracting a pledge to hold a second referendum, and the SNP a similar promise to hold a second independence referendum.

Mr Timothy said Remainers were banking on voters blaming Boris Johnson for any further Brexit delay

Nick Timothy lost his job in the wake of the 2017 general election

However, he added: “They are taking people for fools. Voters angry about further delays to Brexit are not going to blame the one politician doing everything he can to take Britain out of the EU. “They are going to blame this Parliament of Remainers and Remoaners whose game is as transparent as it is dishonest.” Referring to a remark by Labour MP Jess Philips explaining her opposition to an election because it was “all about Johnson’s career”, Mr Timothy added: “In other words, she fears Boris will win. JUST IN: Corbyn plot to sneak Remain law through while Tories are at conference

Former PM Tony Blair has said Mr Johnson "cannot move" without Jeremy Corbyn's agreement

Nick Timothy pictured with fellow political adviser Fiona Hill

Jess Phillips "fears Boris Johnson will win", said Mr Timothy

“Having lost one referendum, they will make sure they will not lose another.” Mr Timothy said there was even talk of impeaching Mr Johnson, an archaic Parliamentary procedure which has not been used for more than two centuries. He added: “In reality, of course, this is a silly plan that will not happen.

Where political parties stand on Brexit

“Yet the attempted impeachment of President Trump should still serve a warning to the politicians playing games in Parliament. “Almost everybody in Washington believes the Democrats have just made a terrible mistake in seeking to impeach the President. “As with President Clinton, they say, it will fail and the plotters will appear to be putting their own interest above the public interest.

Jeremy Corbyn has so far resisted attempts to force a general election

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When the day comes - as it certainly shall - their dishonesty and duplicity deserves to be punished Nick Timothy