Blue Brexit passports to be made in Europe
Tory fury as contract to make document that symbolises decision to leave EU goes abroad
A FRANCO-DUTCH company is poised to win the contract to make the iconic blue British passport when the UK leaves the European Union, The Daily Telegraph understands.
In a move set to infuriate Brexiteers, sources have told this newspaper that Gemalto, which is listed on the Amsterdam and Paris stock exchanges, is close to signing the contract after undercutting rivals, including a British firm, by around £50million.
Sir Bill Cash, chairman of the influential European Scrutiny Committee, said the decision, which is expected to be finalised shortly, was “completely wrong and unnecessary”.
The re-introduction of the British blue passport is seen as an important symbolic move and the choice to send the work abroad is a blow to British companies. It is understood that under single market rules, the contract had to be put out for tender across Europe.
Sir Bill said: “I think it is incongruous to say the least. It is completely unnecessary and it is symbolically completely wrong.
“Whatever the conditions which led to the decision in terms of pricing, the fact is that this is a symbolic event.
“Leaving the European Union is the biggest thing that’s happened in British politics for half a century and quite frankly I can’t think of any reason why it should be given to any company other than a British one.”
His concerns are understood to be shared by Brexit-supporting ministers, who say the contract sends out the wrong signal. A number of firms, including one French, one German and one Dutch, were said to be in the running for the £490million contract to make the so-called Brexit passport, according to reports late last year.
The row over the blue passport is set to overshadow Theresa May’s attendance at a summit in Brussels today and tomorrow at which EU leaders are expected to formally agree a transition period after Brexit.
Yesterday Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, said the agreement would delay the “negative consequences” of Brexit for 21 months, in a statement confirming he had recommended the Council sign the deal.
Mrs May will also use the summit to urge EU leaders to begin a mass expulsion of Russian diplomats, warning them “we are all at risk”.
The Prime Minister will rally support for an international response to the Salisbury poisonings of a former Russian spy and his daughter with the message that Vladimir Putin is a threat who will “endure for years to come”.
Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, hinted yesterday that England fans could be advised not to travel to the Russia 2018 football World Cup as he compared the event to Adolf Hitler’s 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Russia yesterday accused Britain of deliberately concealing evidence relating to the Salisbury attack and questioned whether it even involved a nerve agent. At a “briefing” for foreign diplomats in Moscow, Vladimir Yermakov, Russia’s head of non-proliferation and arms control, suggested his country was being “blatantly framed”. The
country is now being described in Government as a “strategic enemy” of the UK, with Mr Putin’s re-election on Sunday as Russian president serving only to tighten his grip on the Kremlin.
At a dinner with her 27 European counterparts tonight, Mrs May will tell the EU leaders: “The challenge of Russia is one that will endure for years to come. As a European democracy, the United Kingdom will stand shoulder to shoulder with the European Union and with Nato to face these threats together. United we will succeed.”
A senior Downing Street official added: “The Russian threat does not respect borders and as such we are all at risk.”
Mrs May will encourage both individual leaders and the European Union as a whole to expel Russian diplomats, saying the Salisbury poisonings showed the threat that was posed by Russia to the national security of every EU member.
Mr Johnson compared Russia’s hosting of the 2018 World Cup to Adolf Hitler presiding over the 1936 Berlin Olympics, saying it would be sickening to see Mr Putin “glorying in this sporting event”.
The Foreign Secretary also hinted that England fans could be advised not to go to the tournament because some England matches were being held in cities notorious for nationalism and hooliganism. One of the 23 Britons expelled by Russia this week had been responsible for fan safety there.