Arnold Schwarzenegger backs Boris

The Terminator Arnold Schwarzenegger believes Boris Johnson will one day be Prime Minister

 

After travelling on a “Boris bike” beside him on the streets of London, and joining him, too, on a cable car ride over the Thames, Arnold Schwarzenegger knows that Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, has staying power.

Now, the 65 year-old former Governor of California believes that his friend will make the journey all the way to 10 Downing Street.

“He has the qualities that are essential for a leader,” Schwarzenegger tells me at a party to promote his new film, The Last Stand. “For politicians, it’s all about personality. Boris is charming, he’s funny, and he’s very clever. But also he is a visionary and he’s very likeable — and that’s really important in politics.”

Johnson has, for his part, also praised Schwarzenegger. “Neither of us waits for the national government or the federal government or the capitalists to tell us what to do,” he has said. “We show that local government can have the power to lead.”

Johnson made mention of his unlikely friendship with "the Austrian cyborg" during his speech to the Conservative Party Conference when speculation was rife that the London mayor might soon be taking David Cameron’s job.

Schwarzenegger was careful, however, not to terminate his relationship with the Prime Minister. “I think David is doing a really great job. It’s never easy when you inherit debt like that. Also, I’ve spent a lot of time with him, and I can tell you that he is a very, very, funny man.” Not just a prime minister, but, like David Brent, an all-round entertainer.