I back deal and support Theresa
Scottish Conservative councillors, MSPs and volunteers knock doors with me to find out what people are interested in. This week, amongst the concerns about everyday issues, many people had an opinion about Brexit. They consistently said that they want the politicians to get on with it.
The things you see on television or read in national newspapers about the tense atmosphere in Parliament tends to emphasise extreme opinions. There are a small minority of MPs within Parliament who occupy extreme positions of either trying to reverse the referendum that expressed the view of the British people or seeking a hard Brexit with no deal.
When I was running for election, I promised that I would carry out the instructions of the British people and ensure we leave the European Union. I also promised that I would fight for a deal that would make the best of Brexit and keep strong the Union between Scotland and the rest of the UK.
This promise has always been at the forefront of my thinking.
While the country should be prepared for a ‘no deal’ Brexit, it is in no way a desirable outcome and would put our economy and our country at risk.
On the table is a withdrawal agreement which will start a transition period taking us through the next few years until we agree a future relationship with the EU.
It does not include an agreement on the future relationship, but is the doorway we must go through to get there.
It is a 585-page document written in legal terms (it’s not light reading), so there is still a need to get to grips with it to fully understand it.
At this stage I am seeking assurances on a couple of issues.
The first issue is about what happens at the end of the planned transition period if we enter the‘backstop’.
The backstop is what happens if we have not finalised the details of the future relationship between the UK and the EU.
Its purpose is to prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Everyone must work hard to prevent us from having to go into this arrangement, but if we do it should be for a minimal period. I want assurance that if we find ourselves in the backstop there is an incentive for the UK and the EU to want to agree to a new future relationship quickly.
The second thing on which I want assurance is that the UK remains a whole and united country. I would not want to see anything which threatened the Union or restricted the operation of the UK internal market, which is so critically important to Scottish and Northern Irish businesses, and therefore to jobs.
When I speak to people in Stirling the most common thing I am told is that the politicians should get on with it.
That is exactly what I want to do and, subject to these clarifications, it would be my intention to support this deal. We need certainty, and this represents the way to achieve it.
Anyone who has been watching the coverage of this over the past few weeks cannot help but be struck by the dignity and fortitude with which Theresa May has faced this.
Despite many uncivil and derogatory things being said about her and to her, she has convinced her Cabinet, she has spoken at length to Parliament and to the country about her plan and it is admirable that she keeps going, despite everything. For that reason she retains my full support.