We can’t shut down immigration after EU exit, says Hammond
IMMIGRATION must not be “shut down” after Britain leaves the EU, Chancellor Philip Hammond said yesterday.
In his annual City of London speech at Mansion House, he warned that a drastic reduction in new arrivals could damage the economy and undermine job creation.
Instead, he called for a jobs first Brexit that prioritises British jobs and underpins Britain’s prosperity.
And he also raised the possibility of a temporary transition period with the UK staying in the EU Single Market for several years after formally leaving the bloc to give British businesses time to adjust to new arrangements.
Critics last night seized on his remarks as fresh evidence of a rift between the Treasury and Downing Street.
They claimed the Chancellor wanted a less radical break with Brussels that prioritised economic growth over tighter border controls.
But Eurosceptic Tory MPs welcomed his words as a sign that the Government is pressing ahead with delivering Brexit including ultimately leaving the Single Market and customs union.
Mr Hammond’s address was postponed from last week after the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
He promised not to turn a “blind eye” to the growing backlash among voters against the global economy and mass immigration.
He added: “We are not about to turn inward. But we do want to ensure that the arrangements we have in place work for our economy.
“Just as the British people understand the benefits of trade, so too they understand how important it is to business to be able to access global talent and to move individuals around their organisations.
“So while we seek to manage migration, we do not seek to shut it down.”
Priority
Mr Hammond insisted the economy must be a priority in Brexit talks, noting that British people “did not vote to become poorer” in last year’s in-or-out referendum.
He said: “The British people did vote to leave the EU, and we will leave the EU, but it must be done in a way that works for Britain, in a way that prioritises British jobs, and underpins Britain’s prosperity.”
Mr Hammond wanted a “Brexit for Britain” that delivered a free trade deal with the EU, a transitional arrangement “to avoid unnecessary disruption and dangerous cliff edges” plus “frictionless customs deals” for cross-border trade. Former Tory Cabinet minister Iain Duncan Smith backed Mr Hammond’s “fine” and “straightforward” speech, telling BBC Radio 4’s World At One that he did not find much with which to disagree.
He added: “What we should be talking about here is interim measures.”
Mr Duncan Smith rejected claims that the Chancellor wanted a so-called “soft Brexit”, keeping many elements of EU membership after departure.
He said: “I don’t understand what soft Brexit is nor do I understand what a hard Brexit is.”
Tory former minister Stephen Hammond said there would not be civil war in the party over Brexit, adding: “The balance within the party is clearly there for a sane exit from the European Union.”
But Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell claimed the Mansion House speech laid bare a rift over Brexit within ministerial ranks. He added yesterday: “It further shows just how weak a position Theresa May is in.”