Majority of Britons support 'Brexit by any means': poll

LONDON (Reuters) - A majority of Britons believe Prime Minister Boris Johnson must take Britain out of the European Union “by any means”, even if that involves suspending parliament, an opinion poll conducted for the Daily Telegraph said on Monday.

Johnson has promised to lead Britain out of the EU on Oct. 31 regardless of whether he manages to secure an exit deal with Brussels, despite many in parliament being opposed to leaving without a deal.

A ComRes opinion poll showed 54% of respondents said they agreed with the statement: “Boris (Johnson) needs to deliver Brexit by any means, including suspending parliament if necessary, in order to prevent MPs (Members of Parliament) from stopping it.”

Johnson is seeking a deal with the EU but has not ruled out suspending parliament to prevent lawmakers' attempts to block a no-deal exit.

The poll showed 46% disagreed with the statement. The result was based on the answers of 1,645 respondents, after those who said they did not know their preference had been excluded.

The same survey found support for the Conservative Party had risen by 6 percentage points to 31%, compared with 27% who said they would back the opposition Labour Party. That result was based on 1,783 responses.

That finding is largely in line with other polls showing an increase in support for the Conservatives since Johnson took over from Theresa May, who formally quit last month having failed to deliver Brexit on schedule.