Ministers’ chaos over freedom of movement
Rudd says we won’t change rules ‘in single step’ after Brexit But colleague says free-for-all WILL end as soon as we leave EU
DOUBT was cast over plans to scrap free movement from the EU yesterday as ministers appeared to contradict each other over migration policy after Brexit.
Immigration minister Brandon Lewis insisted Britain would ditch the controversial rules when it quits the EU in March 2019.
But his boss Amber Rudd promised businesses she would not shut the door to EU workers after Brexit, saying borders would stay open to the ‘brightest and best’.
The Home Secretary – an arch Remainer who is keen for a so-called ‘soft’ Brexit – was later forced to deny there was any ‘contradiction’ between their views.
However, in a letter to the Migration Advisory Committee, an independent panel that will carry out a census- style survey of every EU worker, she suggested the UK would not introduce new curbs on foreign workers ‘in a single step’.
The apparent stand-off fuelled accusations the Government is presiding over a ‘great Brexit betrayal’ by refusing to slash immigration immediately after the UK leaves. It also exposed fresh splits among Tory ministers and raised concerns No 10 is failing to get a grip on a key policy.
The furore erupted after Miss Rudd tasked the MAC with conducting the most comprehensive assessment ever of European immigration on Britain’s economy.
The aim is to help ministers devise an immigration system after the country leaves the EU. It is due to report by September 2018 – six months before Brexit.
Yesterday Mr Lewis’s position appeared to differ from an apparent Cabinet agreement last week that backed a transition deal to keep Britain in the single market until 2022 – meaning free movement would continue for three years after Brexit.
‘Free movement of labour ends when we leave the European Union in the spring of 2019 – we’re very clear about that,’ he told BBC Radio 4’s Today.
Asked whether it was a red line to end free movement in March 2019, he said: ‘It’s a simple matter of fact that the four key principles of the European Union include free movement – we won’t be a member of the European Union when we leave.’
He said a new visa system would be outlined in an Immigration Bill that will go through Parliament next year.
Mr Lewis insisted the Government remained committed to cutting net migration to tens of thousands but would not put a timescale on the decade-old target. He said: ‘We cannot, people know, control our net migration levels fully until we leave the European Union.’
But signalling a softening of the Government position, Miss Rudd said Britain would stay open to skilled EU citizens after Brexit, amid fears the EU vote will do little to cut immigration. In an article for the Financial Times yesterday, she wrote: ‘ Put simply, the UK must remain a hub for international talent. We must keep attracting the brightest and best migrants from around the world.
‘And we must implement a new immigration system after we leave the EU that gives us control and works in all of our interests.’
She wrote to MAC chairman Professor Alan Manning: ‘We do not envisage moving to that future system in a single step when we leave the EU.’ She called for a ‘predictable, well-understood process which moves gradually’ from free movement to a new system.
Miss Rudd later rejected any claims of a ‘contradiction’, adding that any new system ‘will need that grace period for a while before the full changes come in’.
But Lib Dem home affairs spokesman Ed Davey said: ‘We have contradictory statements … and a migration review set to report back just months before the Brexit negotiations end. It’s a recipe for disaster. The Government is in complete disarray.’
Ukip immigration spokesman John Bickley said: ‘Amber Rudd’s statement is a coded message that the Tories have no intention of seriously curbing immigration from the EU after we leave.’
‘Complete disarray’
AFTER the risible row over chlorinewashed chickens – in which two Cabinet ministers publicly contradicted each other – there were more conflicting and confusing messages from senior Tories yesterday, this time over Government Brexit strategy. First, Home Secretary Amber Rudd suggested in a newspaper article that free movement of EU nationals across our borders could still be allowed for a transitional period after Brexit.
Just hours later she was flatly contradicted by immigration minister Brandon Lewis – her junior in the Home Office – who said free movement must end ‘by definition’ on the day we leave the EU in spring 2019. There could be no extensions.
It was another example of ministers giving the impression that one hand doesn’t know what the other is doing. They are engaged in the most important negotiations Britain has seen for a generation, yet there is no unity and seemingly no coherent plan.
This shambles not only shakes public confidence, but also gives ammunition to both Labour and Brussels negotiators.
The apparent purpose of Miss Rudd’s article was to reassure business that migration would not ‘fall off a cliff- edge’ once we leave the EU. She promised we would continue to welcome workers who were of benefit to the economy.
Yes, there may need to be a transitional period. And yes, we must retain the right to allow European workers into this country where the economy needs them. But we must make those decisions ourselves and have control over our borders.
Whether Miss Rudd is right to show her hand so early in the negotiations is another matter.
Any hint that we are prepared to extend the two-year deadline will give succour to those who want to frustrate the will of the people and keep free movement indefinitely.
For the present, what is more worrying is the chaos that is enveloping Theresa May’s Cabinet, with ministers seemingly incapable of showing the disciplined unity that is the prerequisite of a successful government.