Raab’s blast over no deal scare stories
... as deadline for Brexit deal is pushed back to November
DOMINIC Raab last night blasted ‘hair-raising’ claims that hospitals could run out of drugs in the event of a no deal Brexit as scare stories.
As the EU’s chief negotiator effectively extended the deadline for a deal, the Brexit Secretary dismissed the scaremongering as being ‘very far from the truth’.
It came after a health boss warned the NHS’ ‘entire supply chain of pharmaceuticals could be adversely affected’ from day one if Britain leaves without a deal next March. Mr Raab is due to give more detail about Britain’s preparations for such a scenario tomorrow when the Government begins publishing technical notices on its ‘no deal’ plans.
He and Michel Barnier met in Brussels for the latest round of talks, with the latter suggesting the deadline had shifted from October to ‘early November’. Mr Raab insisted even if the two sides fail to reach a deal, Britain will carry on with no significant disruption.
Yesterday’s three-hour meeting was the third time Mr Raab and Mr Barnier have met in little over a month. In contrast, it took the first six months of 2018 for Mr Barnier to meet former Brexit Secretary, David Davis, the same number of times. It reflects ministers’ hopes of stepping up the pace of negotiations in the hope of hammering out a deal in time for an EU summit in October. And Mr Raab revealed he would be
‘Described as a blame game’
visiting Brussels again next week. He said: ‘I agree with Michel that we need to keep, as we climb the mountain, our eyes on the summit and accentuate the positives. But we’ve got to close down those areas of disagreement.
‘We’re going to be picking up the intensity of negotiations. The responsible thing for any government to do, and on the EU side, is to make sure we’re prepared for all eventualities.’
Mr Raab is expected to give more details in his speech tomorrow, with around 20 papers being published detailing Britain’s preparations for leaving the EU in the event of a no deal.
The documents will cover such subjects as payments to farmers, state aid, nuclear research and the Erasmus education scheme.
An impact paper for financial services – one of the most contentious areas – was also originally listed for publication tomorrow but could be delayed.
One already leaked document suggests the UK plans to give 3.8 million EU citizens currently living in the UK the right to remain permanently in the event of no deal.
The papers are understood to be relatively short, anywhere between two and five pages.
Mr Barnier warned the EU would not be swayed by what he described as a ‘blame game’ in Britain over who would be responsible for a no deal Brexit.
He added that the EU did not want no deal because it would be the ‘most costly’ but that it also had to prepare for it. Brussels has long insisted a deal on the withdrawal agreement should be reached by October to give the EU Council and Parliament enough time to ratify it before Britain formally leaves at the end of March. When asked if he believed a deal could still be reached by October, Mr Barnier said it needed to be ‘well before the end of the year’ and no later than early November.
However, he said disagreements remained over Theresa May’s Chequers white paper as it ‘contradicts’ the negotiating guidelines from member states. The Irish border issue remains a sticking point. When asked why the EU had not shifted on its red lines while Britain appeared to, he said: ‘How can you change principles on which the EU is based? The UK is leaving the EU, not the other way around.’
Yesterday Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt still believed a deal would be reached saying: ‘As a country we have had bigger challenges than this and we will find a way whatever the outcome to survive and prosper.’