Boris Johnson Hosts Launch of Hard-Brexit Pressure Group

U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is to host the launch of a pressure group that is pushing for maximum distance from the European Union, less than a week after Prime Minister Theresa May tried to woo EU leaders with softer language on Brexit.

The Institute for Free Trade has been set up by the pro-Brexit Conservative member of the European Parliament, Daniel Hannan. In an article explaining its mission, he said Britain should reject the course of rolling over existing EU tariffs and quotas and instead “open our markets in the way Hong Kong and New Zealand have done.” The group’s website also calls for new trade networks to be based on mutual recognition, rather than standardization. Both would be likely to make a Brexit arrangement mirroring Britain’s current single market access more difficult.