FILE PHOTO: Boris Johnson speaks at the Conservative Home fringe meeting at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Britain, October 2, 2018. REUTERS/Darren Staples

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s former foreign minister Boris Johnson, who has led calls for Theresa May to ditch her Brexit plan, on Thursday welcomed a proposal from Brussels for the two sides to agree a Canada-style deal.

Johnson is May’s most powerful critic in her governing party and he has called for the prime minister to drop her so-called Chequers plan in favor of a Canada-type deal which drops the need for the UK to apply EU regulations on trade.

Johnson tweeted of the proposal from European Council President Donald Tusk: “Tusk’s Canada +++ offer shows there is a superb way forward that can solve the Irish border problem and deliver a free trade based partnership that works well for both sides of the channel - as I set out last week in my plan for a better Brexit.”