Theresa May has attempted to reassert her authority after Boris Johnson set out his own vision for Brexit.
Asked about the foreign secretary’s newspaper article, which sparked accusations of “backseat driving”, the PM told journalists: “This government is driven from the front.”
“We are all going to the same destination,” she added.
Mr Johnson said he was trying to “sketch out” the “incredibly exciting landscape of the destination ahead”.
He said: “What I am trying to do is set out, in advance of the prime minister’s speech in Florence on Friday, because I was involved in that Brexit campaign, people want to know where we are going.
“It is a good thing to have a bit of an opening drum roll about what this country can do.”
The PM’s comments were made as she flew to Canada to discuss post-Brexit trade with her counterpart Justin Trudeau.
Mr Johnson’s 4,000-word Daily Telegraph article came ahead of Mrs May’s major speech on Brexit in Florence on Friday.
As well as saying the UK would “take back control” of about £350m a week after Brexit – and that much of this could be spent on the NHS – he said he opposed paying the EU to secure temporary access to the single market during a transitional phase after the UK’s departure.
Asked about the foreign secretary’s intervention, the PM said all ministers had agreed to the principles she had set out in her Lancaster House speech on Brexit in January.
She said: “We are all agreed as a government about the importance of ensuring the right deal for Britain, the right withdrawal agreement but also the right deal on a special partnership between the EU and UK for the future.
“We are all optimistic about what we can be achieving for the UK for the future.” (BBCNEWS)