TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT
■ As he honours his vow to get Brexit done, PM hails fresh start ■ Cabinet meets in North to signal support for left-behind Leave areas ■ Now he’s got 11 months to strike a new trade deal with Brussels...
BORIS Johnson will deliver a plea for the country to move on from Brexit tonight as the UK finally leaves the EU.
In an address to be broadcast shortly before Britain’s departure at 11pm, the Prime Minister will insist that Brexit marks ‘not an end but a beginning’.
and in a sign of the new Government’s changed approach, he will convene a symbolic Cabinet meeting this afternoon in Sunderland, the first city to declare for Brexit when the 2016 referendum results came out.
Tonight he will stress his belief that the referendum was a vote not just to leave the EU, but also for lasting change in neglected areas of the country. Mr Johnson will describe Brexit as ‘the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act’. He will go on: ‘It is a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances – your family’s life chances – should depend on which part of the country you grow up in.’
at 11pm – midnight on the Continent – Britain will legally leave the EU and enter a ‘transition period’ which runs until December 31. During this time the UK will remain subject to EU laws and free movement of people will continue.
On Monday Mr Johnson will deliver a major speech setting out his approach to both Brexit and national renewal. Sources said he would be ‘very frank’ about his aims for the negotiations with Brussels and his determination to allow Britain to ‘diverge’ from the EU, even if this means the introduction of some trade barriers.
He will also spell out his determination to ensure that the Brexit transition period will not be extended beyond the end of this year, despite warnings from Brussels
that there is not enough time to complete a comprehensive free trade agreement. Mr Johnson will warn that failure to strike a trade deal by the end of the year would lead to the introduction of tariffs on goods entering from the EU, such as German cars, French cheese and Italian wines.
One Government source said: ‘Theresa May made two crucial mistakes – she wasn’t clear about what she wanted, and she wasn’t clear that she was prepared to leave with or without a deal.
‘We are not going to make those mistakes. We want a good free trade deal, without alignment, but we are prepared to leave without one if we have to.’ Mr Johnson will also reject calls for the EU to be given automatic rights to UK fishing grounds – and for the European Court of Justice to be the arbiter of disputes arising from a new trade deal.
Mr Johnson has ordered only low key events to mark Britain’s departure tonight. Union flags will fly in the Mall and Parliament Square and a light show will be displayed on the front of No10. a Downing Street spokesman said the Prime Minister would ‘celebrate Brexit’ with a small party for staff.
Leading Eurosceptic Steve Baker called for Brexiteers to avoid triumphalism, saying: ‘I will celebrate in a way which is respectful of the genuine sorrow that others are feeling at the same time.’
Fellow Brexiteer Peter Bone called for the introduction of a bank holiday named United Kingdom Day so ‘people will have the day off and say thank goodness for that Brexit vote’.