London - The frontrunner to be Britain's
next prime minister, Boris Johnson, came under renewed pressure
on Sunday to explain the circumstances of a late-night row
between him and girlfriend that led to the police being called
to their home.
Polls conducted for the Mail on Sunday newspaper before and
after Britain's front pages were dominated by the argument
showed that Johnson's lead over rival Jeremy Hunt, the foreign
minister, had evaporated amongst all voters and had narrowed
among supporters of his ruling Conservative Party.
Johnson declined to answer questions about the incident at a
hustings for party members on Saturday, saying to applause that
the audience wanted instead to hear about his plans for Britain
three years after the country voted to leave the European Union.
International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, who is backing
Hunt, said the reports should not distract from the policy
debate in the race to become the prime minister, which will be
decided by 160,000 party members next month.
"I think it's always easier to just give an explanation," he
told the BBC's Andrew Marr on Sunday.
"But the key thing then is how you get on to the issues;
what we can't have is it being a distraction from explanations
about wider polices and where we go to and when."
Hunt, who was campaigning in Scotland on Sunday, told Sky
News that Johnson, a former foreign minister and former London
mayor, "needs to show he's prepared to answer difficult
questions".
"I think someone who wants to be prime minister should
answer questions on everything," he said.
Hunt said he was not going to comment on Johnson's private
life. "That's for others to make their judgments on," he said.
But he added that Johnson had to engage more in the
leadership race, including taking part in more TV debates.
The clear favourite, Johnson had tried to stay out of the
limelight during the campaign, and opponents have accused him of
running from scrutiny to avoid the gaffes that have been a
feature of his career so far.
Johnson, who has a leading Brexit campaigner in the 2016
referendum, on Saturday reiterated his desire to leave the
European Union in October with or without a deal.
Hunt, who backed Remain in the referendum, said he would
take the country out of the bloc without a deal on Oct. 31 if
the EU had not showed it was willing to renegotiate the Brexit
deal agreed with May that been rejected three times by
parliament.
The EU has repeatedly said it will not renegotiate the
withdrawal deal.
Polling for the Mail on Sunday showed Johnson was seen as
the best prime minister by 36% of all voters on Thursday, while
Jeremy Hunt was supported by 28%.
But Johnson had lost the lead on Saturday, with 32%
supporting Hunt and 29% Johnson. Among Conservative voters,
Johnson's lead fell from 55% to 45%, while Hunt's standing rose
from 28% to 34%, the polls conducted by Survation showed.
Police were called to an address in south London where
Johnson is living with girlfriend Carrie Symonds in the early
hours of Friday after neighbours heard a loud altercation.
Johnson, 55, is currently divorcing his second wife.
All occupants of the address were spoken to and were all
safe and well, police said in a statement.
Supporters of Johnson have said the action of a neighbour in
releasing a recording of the row to the Guardian newspaper was
politically motivated.
Neighbour Tom Penn, 29, said in a statement he had called
the police because he was "frightened and concerned for the
welfare of those involved".
"Once clear that no one was harmed, I contacted the
Guardian, as I felt it was of important public interest," he
said. "I believe it is reasonable for someone who is likely to
become our next prime minister to be held accountable for all of
their words, actions and behaviours."
Penn said voted to remain the European Union three years
ago, but that was the extent of his involvement in politics.