The UK is set to leave the European Union in just 97 days, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson made a “do or die” pledge to exit the bloc on October 31. Mr Johnson, who replaced Theresa May in Number 10 on Wednesday, has already sent shockwaves through Westminster and vowed to honour the Halloween deadline “no ifs or buts”. The former London Mayor has received a boost, after a business expert dismissed the scaremongering by angry Remainers arguing leaving the EU without a deal would be catastrophic for the UK’s economy.

William Hobbs, chief investment officer of Barclays Investment Solutions, told CNBC: “We don’t think Brexit is the end of days for the UK economy to be honest.”

Mr Johnson received overwhelming support in the Tory leadership contest, after two-thirds of Conservative members voted for him over former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

However despite the huge mandate given by Tory members, Mr Hobbs urged caution when setting out his path for Brexit.

He said: “Always be careful of listening to campaign trail patter and trying to translate it into policy.

“That part of the electorate is known to be further to the right, more enamored with Brexit and all those kinds of things than the wider population — and indeed, the Conservative parliamentary party.”

Mr Johnson has said his priority remains leaving the EU with an agreement and stated he would work “flat out” to achieve a deal, but would be willing to walk away from negotiations with Brussels.

The Prime Minister held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron today and made it clear the Northern Ireland backstop will have to go if there is to be a new Brexit deal between Britain and the EU.

Downing Street said Mr Johnson had delivered the same message as when he spoke to European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker on Thursday, arguing Theresa May’s Brexit deal would not get through Parliament.

Mr Johnson’s spokesman said: “When the Prime Minister has these conversations with fellow leaders and the discussion moves onto Brexit, he will be setting out the same message which he delivered in the House of Commons yesterday.

“He wants to do a deal. He will be energetic in trying to seek that deal but the withdrawal agreement has been rejected three times by the House of Commons. It is not going to pass.

“That means reopening the withdrawal agreement and securing the abolition of the backstop.”

The EU has so far been unwilling to budge on its red lines, with just over three months until the Brexit deadline, Mr Hoobs when asked about the impact of a no deal Brexit, he said: “The honest answer always has to be, in this situation, totally unknown.”

Mr Johnson’s team led by Michael Gove, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, have been tasked with ramping up no deal preparations.

Kit Malthouse, who was appointed into Mr Johnson’s Government as policing minister, said there would be an autumn budget to “stimulate the economy”.

He told Sky News: “The prime minister has also announced there’s going to be an emergency budget in the autumn which will be designed to stimulate the economy.

“What you hope is that a more strongly growing economy will produce greater tax revenue which we can pay for some of the things that we want to do.”

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