Juncker: 'Many lies' told in UK referendum

The outgoing president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has accused British Prime Minister Boris Johnson of being one of the people telling "so many lies" during the build-up to the June 2016 referendum which set in train the Brexit process that has dominated European Union politics ever since.

The veteran Luxembourg politician, who will be succeeded by Germany's Urusula von der Leyen next month, has previously expressed his regret at how much of his five-year term has been occupied by the still unresolved issue of how Britain is to disengage from the bloc.

"So many lies were told, including by current prime minister, Boris Johnson, that there needed to be a voice to counter them," he said in an interview for German magazine Der Spiegel. He also revealed that he had wanted to speak out for the "Remain" cause during the Brexit referendum, but was advised against it by then-prime minister David Cameron.