A LEADING Brexiteer MP says he still backs Boris Johnson to become the next Prime Minister despite a number of issues dogging the candidate.

Henry Smith, Conservative MP for Crawley, said former Foreign Secretary Mr Johnson had been subject to “unfair attacks” in the press.

But in a shock move, Mr Smith said he would be happy if Mr Johnson’s opponent and current Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt became the next Conservative leader.

Mr Smith said: “”Boris is one of those personalities which people either enthusiastically like or feel the opposite way about.

“He has certainly been the target of a lot of pressure since he got into the final two because of who he is.

“Some of that has been unfair, I think, but he has dealt with it in a pretty strong way.

“He has been criticised for not being accountable, but I can’t see that... his schedule is constantly full.

“We’re very lucky in that we have two high calibre, impressive candidates in this competition.

“I think Boris Johnson is the better candidate, but Jeremy Hunt would also make a good leader as long as he follows through with Brexit.”

Mr Smith said Mr Johnson’s term as Mayor of London proved he is ready to lead the country.

He said: “When he was Mayor of London, knife crime plummeted and 100,000 homes were built.

“We also saw a hugely successful London Olympics which put the city on the world stage.

“What he has done with a global city of London I think he can do for the UK.”

The Crawley MP also praised the former Foreign Secretary’s policy ideas on a post-UK Brexit, including controversially reducing immigration.

He said: “He has been very clear that we need to leave the EU in October, ideally with a deal but with no deal on the table if it comes to it.

“He has some great policies for the country too, he wants to increase per-pupil funding in education and reducing the tax burden on people, as well as helping first-time buyers in the housing market.

“He’s also looking beyond Brexit and wants to introduce an Australian-style points-based immigration system in order to stop the strain on our public services.”

l Read our analysis of the race for PMi on pages 10 and 11.