May: Don’t expect EU free movement to end for 5 years

FREE movement of people from the EU could continue for five more years, Theresa May warned yesterday.

The Prime Minister said any Brexit deal would ensure Britain regained ‘control of our borders’.

But asked if free movement would end automatically when the UK left the EU in March 2019, she said there would be an ‘implementation period’ to give businesses and governments time to ‘adjust’.

Any transitional arrangement could last around three years as Britain completes the task of extricating itself from 40 years of EU membership.

Brussels has already made it clear the UK will be expected to sign up to its rules, including free movement, during any transitional phase.

Mrs May told reporters on a trip to the Middle East that, while a transitional period would be necessary following any deal, ‘what is crucial for the British public, what was part of the vote last year, was that they want to ensure we have control of our borders and control of immigration and that’s exactly what we will do when we come out of the EU.’

Alp Mehmet, vice-chairman of Migration Watch, last night urged the PM to think again.

He said: ‘We believe at the point of departure, at the very least EU migrants looking for work should not be allowed in. The reason so many people voted out was because they wanted controls on immigration.

‘It’s absolutely essential that immigration from the EU is controlled at the very first opportunity and that is March 29, 2019.’ Ukip leader Paul Nuttall also criticised the Government’s stance, saying ‘the backsliding is in full swing already’. But a poll yesterday suggested most Britons would accept a temporary extension of free movement.

The ICM survey found that 54 per cent of people felt it would be ‘acceptable’ for free movement to continue for a few years, compared with 29 per cent who did not. By comparison, just 10 per cent of people would accept a Brexit ‘ divorce bill’ of more than £20 billion, while 70 per cent would not. The EU is demanding £50 billion.

Meanwhile, Mrs May said she was confident that Brussels will not block the UK from continuing with 50 trade deals the EU has signed with countries around the world, such as South Korea and Canada.

Some senior EU figures have warned the UK would have to start again on trade negotiations after leaving.

But the Prime Minister told Sky News: ‘It will be possible for us to continue trade arrangements with countries where we’ve previously had them through the once we are outside the European Union.’

The first Brexit – Page 22