Boris Johnson returns as Telegraph columnist

LONDON: After resigning as foreign minister last week over Prime Minister Theresa May’s compromise plan for Brexit, Boris Johnson is back at his old job as a columnist at the eurosceptic Daily Telegraph newspaper.

"He’s Back", the paper said on its front page on Monday. Johnson was named foreign minister in July 2016 after playing a leading role in the Brexit referendum campaign.

He was forced to give up his regular columns, which a spokesman said were "inappropriate" for his new role. When he gave up the newspaper job he also had to renounce the salary of £275,000 that went with it for a more modest ministerial income of £143,789.

The 54-year-old Johnson, who is famous for his frequent gaffes and off-colour quips, started his career as a journalist and has worked on and off for the Daily Telegraph for 20 years. He was a Brussels correspondent for the newspaper between 1989 and 1994, becoming famous for virulently eurosceptic articles, after being sacked by The Times for making up a quote.

During two years in government, he still penned around 20 articles for the Telegraph in which he often undermined May’s position and called for a more hardline approach to Brexit.