MINISTER FEARS BREXIT PARALYSIS
MPs should follow lead of business
FOREIGN SECRETARY Jeremy Hunt has warned of “Brexit paralysis” if MPs vote down Theresa May’s Withdrawal Agreement next week, potentially meaning the UK does not leave the European Union at all.
Mr Hunt warned that failure to deliver Brexit would be “incredibly damaging” for the UK and something the country would regret for “many, many generations”.
He appealed to MPs who have spent months fighting for their “number one top favourite outcome” to come together behind a Withdrawal Agreement which is “not perfect” but “broadly delivers Brexit”.
Mr Hunt suggested that legally binding assurances from Brussels over the deal’s controversial backstop arrangements should be enough to allay the fears of many MPs over the long-term impact of the Agreement.
European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said discussions were continuing with No 10 as to what form such assurances could take, as he warned that a no-deal would be a “catastrophe”.
“We are checking with Downing Street what the clarifications could amount to. They should not be confused with a renegotiation,” he said during a visit to Romania.
He added: “I don’t like the prospect of a no-deal. It would be a catastrophe.”
Meanwhile, Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd said she is “committed” to ensuring that the UK does not leave without a deal.
During an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Ms Rudd three times declined to say whether she would remain a member of the Government if it opted for a no-deal Brexit.
The Cabinet Ministers were speaking as MPs on the third day of debate in the House of Commons ahead of next Tuesday’s crunch vote, with Home Secretary Sajid Javid opening proceedings which are expected to be dominated by the issue of migration.
In a significant shift of tone apparently designed to win over hardline Brexiteers who have set their faces against Mrs May’s deal, Mr Hunt warned that defeat next week would not necessarily provide MPs with the opportunity to choose their preferred version of Brexit.
Warning that there may be no consensus in the Commons around any possible outcome, the Foreign Secretary told Today: “If this deal is rejected, ultimately what we may end up with is not a different type of Brexit but Brexit paralysis.
“And Brexit paralysis ultimately could lead to no Brexit.
“I’m saying this would be (an) incredibly damaging breach of trust and it would also be very bad for Britain’s reputation abroad, having decided to leave the EU, if we in the end for whatever reasons found we weren’t able to do it.”
Mr Hunt warned: “If we were, as a political class, not to deliver Brexit, that would be a fundamental breach of trust between the people and the politicians.
“I think that is something that we would regret for many, many generations.”
THE POLITICAL paralysis over Brexit contrasts with the leadership being shown by this region’s manufacturers and leading employers. Even though they, too, have no idea of the consequences if Theresa May’s Withdrawal Agreement is voted down, they’re preparing for every eventuality.
And the pragmatism of individuals like Sheffield Chamber of Commerce director Richard Wright makes it regrettable that Mrs May did not involve business leaders in Brexit negotiations and preparations from day one. Any short-term uncertainty – and manufacturers are stockpiling supplies to guard against a no-deal Brexit – could, they contend, be offset by medium and long-term gains.
But Mr Wright, and others, also know that most political decisions are short-termist – it is why David Cameron called the EU referendum – and the country cannot afford to become defeatist or this risks becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy to compound the problems if, for example, Chris Grayling’s new ferries don’t materialise.
And, at the same time, MPs should heed the considered speech delivered in the House of Lords by Jim O’Neill, a former Treasury Minister and architect of the Northern Powerhouse. Describing himself as an “unexcited remainer”, he suggests the “under-performance of UK productivity” is still the biggest barrier to future growth, more so than Britain leaving the EU without a deal on March 29, and there is no excuse for policies like the Northern Powerhouse being “frozen”.
Time will tell if sufficient MPs do take off the Brexit blinkers next Tuesday. As Lord O’Neill said: “It is surely unacceptable that Brexit requires so much time and resource that there is no scope for things that, in my view, are more important. Whatever the outcome of the current EU debates and plans, this needs to urgently change.”