Boris Johnson vows to ‘give Britain its mojo back’ so we can ‘stand tall’ in Blair’s old constituency seized by Tories

BORIS Johnson parked his tanks on Labour’s lawn yesterday and told his new army of supporters: “I will recover Britain’s mojo.”

The jubilant PM travelled to Tony Blair’s North East backyard to thank campaigners and voters who helped deliver his stunning election victory.

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His visit to Sedgefield — the former constituency of the three-time Labour Premier — drove home the scale of last week’s landslide.

It was once an impenetrable seat with a 26,000 majority but has now elected its first Tory MP since 1931.

Greeted by chants of “Boris, Boris, Boris”, the PM hailed the party workers who broke through Labour’s Red Wall in the North.

But he warned his rookie MPs they must now work even harder to deliver for the people in their new working-class heartlands — and repay the voters’ trust.

He declared: “Remember, we are not the masters. We are the servants now and our job is to serve the people of this country and to deliver on our priorities.”

Mr Johnson told the MPs for Darlington, Stockton South, Blyth Valley, Redcar, Sedgefield, Bishop Auckland and North West Durham they would do “fantastic things”.

And he vowed to use the Tory tide to form a “People’s Government” — delivering better schools and hospitals, safer streets and a brighter future.

He added: “Our country has embarked on a wonderful adventure. We’re going to recover our national confidence, our mojo, our self-belief.”

Mr Johnson said he would reward the trust placed in the Tories by voters who traditionally supported Labour.

He admitted he shared the agony of tens of thousands of people who made that big leap to desert Labour and vote Conservative for the first time.

Speaking at a cricket club where Mr Blair was once feted, the PM said: “I know how difficult it can be to make that kind of decision.

“I can imagine people’s pencils on the ballot paper hovering and wavering before coming down on the Conservatives.”

Mr Johnson has pledged to use his 80-seat majority to “heal” Britain once he has brought “closure” to the Brexit turmoil of the past three years.

'GROWTH AND HOPE'

Signalling a distinct shift towards the centre ground, he made unity the theme of a muted victory speech in Downing Street — promising to repay the trust of all those who had voted Tory for the first time.

He promised 2020 would be a year of “prosperity, growth and hope” on Friday and signed off by saying: “Thank you all very much, and Happy Christmas.”

Yesterday in Sedgefield, he added: “I want the people in the North East to know that we in the Conservative Party, and I, will repay your trust.

“Everything I do as your Prime Minister will be devoted to repaying that trust. First of all to get Brexit done . . . and improve our fantastic National Health Service.

“We believe talent is evenly distributed across this country but opportunity is unfairly distributed and we are going to reconcile that as a One Nation Conservative Government: the People’s Government.

“First of all, what are we going to do? We’re going to get Brexit done, aren’t we? And we have a deal that is ready to go haven’t we? Can anybody tell me what kind of a deal it is?”

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The crowd replied: “Oven ready.”

Mr Johnson added: “But there is much more that we want to do to repay the trust of the people in the North East. We want to take our country forward by uniting and levelling up across our whole incredible United Kingdom.”

Married mum-of-one Gwen Dawe, 75, who was among the crowd, said: “It was excellent. He’s got so much enthusiasm and energy and I really hope he’s going to get things done.

"Everybody was so fed up with Brexit. If it was nothing else, nothing to do with policies, people are so fed up of what was going on in Parliament.

“The negativity, the back-biting, the aggression. Now I’m looking forward to 2020.”

Tax accountant Ibe Ononeze, 27, who grew up in Sedgefield but now lives in Durham, said: “People have lent their votes — it’s now a question of whether they will keep it there. That’s the biggest issue he has now. If people don’t think he’s making any real changes, they will go back to Labour.”

Conservative canvasser Samantha Owen- Stoddart, 36, who went door-to-door in her home city of Newcastle upon Tyne, was among those to welcome Mr Johnson to Sedgefield.

'LABOUR WERE TOO EXTREME'

She said: “There were two things that won this election — his personality and Brexit. On the doorstep, people either wanted Brexit done or they really liked him.

“They didn’t want Corbyn. They thought he was a lunatic who would ruin the country. People were scared and Boris gave them hope.

"People wanted to be listened to — especially up here in the North East. They felt like they were being ignored.”

Grandad Ron Hurst, 82, of nearby Thorpe Larches, said: “Over the years when Labour have got in, the Conservatives have always had to fix the mess they leave.

“Every time — and yet the Conservatives get the blame for it all.”

His wife Diane, 70, added: “We didn’t want the country that Jeremy Corbyn wanted.

“Labour policies were too extreme. That’s what cut through.

“A lot of it was down to Brexit. The majority of people, whether others like it or not, voted to leave and they wouldn’t accept it.”

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Mum-of-one Judith Sedgewick, 71, said: “All our last MP talked about was remain, remain, remain.

“Oh, it’s the jobs and the economy, he would say.

“This was an area that voted 57 per cent to leave. He was gleeful about remaining and that’s what did it for me. He thought he knew better than us and democracy won out at the end of the day.”