Theresa May:

This Cabinet agreement will honour the EU referendum result and protect the UK economy

In the two years since the EU referendum, the government I lead has worked ceaselessly towards achieving a Brexit deal that honours the result of that vote and puts the United Kingdom on track for a prosperous future.

We have already made considerable progress, with agreement on protecting the rights of EU citizens living here in the UK and British citizens living in the EU, on an implementation period to give businesses time to prepare, and on a fair financial settlement.

However, on crucial aspects of our future relationship with the EU our discussions have reached an impasse. Neither of the models that the EU has put on the table would work for Britain.

A standard free trade agreement, with Northern Ireland remaining in the customs union and single market, would shatter the constitutional integrity of our United Kingdom. Some combination of European Economic Area (EEA) and customs union membership would not deliver on the referendum result. It would mean continued free movement, ongoing annual payments of vast sums, the obligation to enact the entirety of EU law and no ability to strike our own trade deals. Neither of these options is acceptable.

A “no deal” scenario is not our intended outcome either. It risks people’s livelihoods and threatens the Union. But as a responsible government, we have to prepare for all eventualities – and that is precisely what I asked the Cabinet to do at Chequers.

Instead, we have an alternative proposal, which the Cabinet agreed the detailed shape of on Friday. Later this week, a White Paper will spell it out in full. It is a coherent package that my party can unite behind, that should command a majority in Parliament and inspire the confidence of the whole British people, however they voted two years ago. I am convinced that this is in the best interests of the UK and the EU.

It honours the referendum result. The UK will leave the European Union on 29 March 2019. We will take back control of our borders, with an end to free movement. We will take back control of our money, with no more vast annual sums paid to the EU. We will take back control of our laws, ending the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice in the United Kingdom.

An up -front commitment to maintain a common rule book for goods and agricultural products, underpinned by our determination to maintain high standards in consumer and employment rights and environmental standards, will enable the creation of a UK-EU free trade area for goods. This common rule book, and a new business-friendly customs model, will ensure both frictionless trade with the EU and the freedom to strike new trade deals around the world. A Parliamentary lock on all new rules and regulations will restore sovereignty and democratic accountability, ensuring that the men and women you elect will make the laws we all live by.

Crucially, this deal will strengthen the whole United Kingdom. There will be no return to a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, and no new border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. Leaving the Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy will give us the freedom to design new policies that work for our rural and coastal communities.

Building on our shared values, we propose continued close cooperation on security matters to keep our people safe. At the same time, we will have a fully independent foreign and defence policy, working closely with our EU and Nato allies.

This proposal is fully in accordance with the principles I set out in my Lancaster House, Florence, Munich and Mansion House speeches. It also honours the commitments made in the last election manifesto upon which every Conservative MP stood. But our proposal of a common rule book to underpin our trading relationship represents a significant evolution of the UK’S negotiating position.

I judge this to be necessary in order to move the negotiations forward. The Cabinet agreed with that judgment and this is now the formal collective position of Her Majesty’s Government. On that basis, the UK’S negotiating team will now engage with the EU on it at pace.

Now is the time to set aside, once and for all, the divisions of the past and to unite as one nation to achieve agreement with the EU. Achieving a Brexit deal that honours the referendum result and sets us on a prosperous course is my duty and my mission. This proposal will achieve it.