LONDON: Mayor of London Boris Johnson on Saturday came out fighting for Britain to leave the European Union, warning that the country had "given away control of our destiny".
The charismatic politician electrified the campaign for the June 23 referendum by declaring last weekend that he backed a so-called Brexit, positioning himself against Prime Minister David Cameron.
After a few days out of the headlines, Johnson set out his stall in two newspaper interviews -- and hit back at the premier, a long-term rival in their Conservative Party.
He said that recent reforms Cameron secured to welfare payments to EU workers seemed "unlikely, frankly" to reduce the numbers of new arrivals as the premier had argued.
Johnson, who has the rare ability to appeal to voters outside his own party, told the Daily Telegraph that he was "massively pro-migrants" and proud to lead a city as diverse as London.
But he added: "The numbers coming in puts massive pressure on housing and other provisions such as social services and education. What we need is managed immigration."
He said his campaign would focus on challenging warnings that leaving the EU would bring economic chaos, while acknowledging there would be an "initial period of dislocation and uncertainty".
"I will do my absolute best to dismiss Project Fear, which I think is nonsense. Britain could have a really great future, with a more dynamic economy and a happier population," Johnson told The Times newspaper.
This week, Cameron condemned an idea seemingly mooted by Johnson that a vote to leave the EU was not final, and instead could be a negotiating tactic to win further concessions from Brussels.
Johnson insisted that "out is out", adding: "This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. It is not going to come around again."
"The fundamental problem is that we have given away control of our destiny in too many areas," he said.
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