Dominic Cummings, the most senior adviser to Boris Johnson, has hit back at accusations that he is “arrogant”.
It followed reports the prime minister could refuse to resign even if he loses a no confidence vote in the Commons.
Speaking on Wednesday morning, Cummings said preparations for a no-deal Brexit were going “great”.
“The most simple thing is the prime minister believes that politicians don’t get to choose which votes they respect,” he told Sky News.
“I don’t think I am arrogant. I don’t know very much about very much. Mr Grieve will see what he’s right about.”
Dominic Grieve, the former Tory attorney general who has led backbench moves to stop no-deal, yesterday attacked Cummings for displaying “characteristic arrogance and ignorance”.
According to The Sunday Telegraph, Cummings told officials it was now too late for MPs to block no-deal on the October 31 exit date.
He is said to have claimed if Johnson lost a no confidence motion he would simply schedule any required general election after exit day.
Jeremy Corbyn has said he could try and bring down the government when parliament returns in September.
Some MPs hope that if Johnson loses a no confidence motion his government could be forced from office and replaced with a cross-party government of national unity led by a senior MP.
But John McDonnell has poured cold water on this and said Johnson’s administration would have to be replaced with Labour government.