Boris Johnson praised for 'standing shoulder to shoulder' with Jewish community after winning race to be PM

But one MP tells the JC the new leader’s election helps Jeremy Corbyn

New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been praised for his “long history of standing shoulder to shoulder with Israel and the Jewish community,” in a statement by the Conservative Friends of Israel group.

Mr Johnson was announced as the new PM in a ceremony at London’s Queen Elizabeth Centre on Tuesday after easily beating leadership challenger Jeremy Hunt, securing 66 per cent of Tory members’ vote.

CFI chairmen Stephen Crabb MP and Lord Pickles, and Honorary President Lord Pollack said in a statement: “From his refusal to boycott Israeli goods in his time as Mayor of London through to his instrumental role as Foreign Secretary in both the landmark Balfour Declaration celebrations and the first-ever official Royal visit to Israel, Boris has a long history of standing shoulder to shoulder with Israel and the Jewish community.

“Mr Johnson continued to display his resolute support throughout the Leadership Contest with a memorable hustings event with CFI and an excellent letter penned to CFI’s supporters reiterating his deep support for Israel and pledging to be a champion for Jews in Britain and around the world’.”

The Board of Deputies also issued a statement wishing Mr Johnson “every success as Prime Minster at this critical time for our country.”

The Board added they had enjoyed a “long and positive relationship” with him as both Mayor of London and Foreign Secretary.

But the JC also spoke with a number of MPs who were fearful that by voting for Boris as PM, the Conservative Party had only strengthened the hand of Jeremy Corbyn.

One said: “This will succeed in persuading more so-called moderate Labour MPs to rally around their leader like never before.

“Wait and see, Boris will be portrayed as this far-right maniac, while Corbyn will be hailed as the lesser evil of two very poor options.”

Mr Johnson won the leadership contest by a convincing margin of 92,153 votes to 46,656. Turnout was 87.4 per cent among 159,320 party members.

In his speech, he reminded the audience of his campaign slogan of “Deliver Brexit, unite the country and defeat Jeremy Corbyn.”