Jacob Rees-Mogg destroys Jean-Claude Juncker’s ‘nightmare’ plan for an EU super state as he blasts Brussels’ demand for a Brexit ‘divorce bill’
Eccentric Tory MP says ‘Britain owes no money, not a brass farthing’ as he lashes hated Eurocrat for bizarre speech
JACOB Rees-Mogg has destroyed Jean-Claude Juncker’s “nightmare” plan for an EU super state as he blasted Brussels’ demand for a multi-billion Brexit “divorce bill”.
The eccentric Tory MP lashed the hated Eurocrat for his bizarre speech yesterday, accusing him of “living in cloud-cuckoo land”.
Mr Juncker unleashed barmy plans for Brussels to seize greater control over corporation tax and VAT across the bloc, create a European ‘FBI’ and an EU Army by 2025.
Spelling out plans for an unprecedented power grab to “unite” Europe, the European Commission president added that he wanted more member states to adopt the Euro.
But Mr Rees-Mogg hit back: "I’m just so glad we’re leaving and are getting out of the possibility of a United States of Europe, which has always been the plan of the Commission.
"If you look at the response of senior European leaders to Monsieur Juncker, I think he’s in cloud cuckoo land. I don’t think there’s any demand for this."
And he said: "It’s happening at a point when the Commission is not only dealing with Brexit but also battling the Hungarian Government and the Polish Government.
"There are lot of tensions within the EU and I think a United States of Europe is Monsieur Juncker’s dream. But it’s everyone else’s nightmare."
Speaking during an LBC phone-in the outspoken backbencher also slammed calls from the EU for Britain to hand over billions in order to leave.
He said: "Under EU and UK law Britain owes no money, not a brass farthing."
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It comes after he issued a withering put-down of Mr Juncker’s claim Britain would “regret” voting for Brexit, saying yesterday: "No one ever regrets liberty.
“Mr Juncker does not understand our desire to rule ourselves according to our own democracy and never will."
He also slammed George Osborne's "bitterness and bile", after former Chancellor was claimed to have said he wanted Theresa May “chopped up in bags in my freezer".
Speaking to Nick Ferrari, Mr Rees-Mogg said: "The sadness of George Osborne is that he is a formidably able man.
“He served with distinction as Chancellor of the Exchequer and he has decided since leaving parliament to emulate a rather less successful Edward Heath.
"And I think this type of bitterness and bile ends up making the person who has that bitterness and bile feel resentful and sad and has no effect on broader politics.
"His firepower diminishes with every bitter outburst and for so able a man that is something we should be sad about rather than particularly condemn."
He also once again dismissed speculation about his potential to be Tory leader, insisting "no one serious" believed he would be a candidate.
The North East Somerset MP admitted so-called Moggmentum was "great fun while it lasts" - but said he fully supports Theresa May.
And he said there needed to be a period of consistent leadership as the country leaves the EU.