EU EXIT WILL BE GREAT SUCCESS
Message from the Prime Minister
BRITAIN is “going to make a success” of leaving the EU, Theresa May vowed yesterday.
The UK will have a bright new future as “one of the great trading nations of the world”, the Prime Minister declared. And she promised there would be “no second referendum – no attempts to sort of stay in the EU by the back door”. Controls on immigration from the European Union will be put in place, her Cabinet agreed, defying demands from
some pro-Remain campaigners for free movement to continue.
Instead the aim will be to forge a unique deal for Britain with the remaining EU states.
Mrs May called her Cabinet together for the first time since Westminster rose for its summer break for a special all-day meeting at her official country residence, Chequers, principally to thrash out how to make “Brexit mean Brexit”.
Speaking on camera at the start of the day’s meetings, Mrs May declared: “We’ll be looking at the next steps that we need to take and we’ll also be looking at the opportunities that are now open to us as we forge a new role for the UK in the world.
Block
“We must continue to be very clear that ‘Brexit means Brexit’, that we’re going to make a success of it.
“That means there’s no second referendum, no attempts to sort of stay in the EU by the back door, that we’re actually going to deliver on this.”
She added: “We have the opportunity to forge a new positive role for the UK in the world, to make sure that we are that Government and country that works for everyone – that everyone can share in the country’s prosperity.
“So there are challenges ahead but it’s an important and significant moment for us and I think we have real opportunities to develop the UK and ensure that it does work for everyone in the UK.” The meeting began with discussions on the economy and terrorism.
Further talks were then held in a “political Cabinet” not attended by civil servants, setting the agenda for the first day of next month’s Tory party conference which will focus on “global Britain”.
Mrs May’s spokeswoman said: “In a discussion about Brexit, the PM said that there were two related imperatives; getting the best deal for people at home and getting the right deal for Britain abroad.”
The meeting underlined Mrs May’s resolve – reported by the Daily Express yesterday – to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the step which will formally announce the UK intends to leave the EU.
Remainer MPs will not be given a chance to block the move – which will start up to two years of talks with Brussels and other EU nations – in the House of Commons. Mrs May has said only that she will not trigger Brexit this year. But her spokeswoman said: “There was a strong emphasis on pushing ahead to Article 50 to lead Britain successfully out of the EU, with no need for a Parliamentary vote.”
Ministers made it clear Britain’s future relations with the EU will not be based on terms now enjoyed by other non-EU states such as Norway and Switzerland but will include
migration curbs. The spokeswoman said: “The model we are seeking is one unique to the UK and not an off-the-shelf solution.
“This must mean controls on the numbers of people who come to Britain from Europe but also a positive outcome for those who wish to trade goods and services.”
The Government will not let pro-EU Scotland or any other part of the UK veto Brexit or go their own way, the spokesperson added.
“On the agenda and discussed at length was the commitment to the devolved nations to make sure that Brexit works for all.
“But Cabinet members were clear that it is the UK’s government’s decision to establish its terms and on when to trigger Article 50.”
Backdoor
Former Tory Chancellor and Brexit campaigner Lord Lawson has urged that Article 50 be tabled as soon as possible and said Britain should not “waste time trying to negotiate elaborately”.
He said: “A long period of uncertainty is bad for the economy, bad for British business, and therefore the sooner this is sorted out the better.”
Conservative MP and former business minister Anna Soubry, part of the Open Britain group being launched by backers of the failed Remain campaign, said Britain should push for a deal that preserves access to the single market and free movement for EU citizens.
But leading Brexit Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said: “The expectation or desire to remain in the single market is basically code for rejecting the referendum result.
“The single market is the engine room for EU regulation and it is the requirement for freedom of movement that comes with it that has put people off the EU.” ON July 13 Theresa May stood outside Number 10 as our new prime minister and promised us that “Brexit means Brexit”.
Ever since, she has continued to make all the right noises, portraying herself as the determined figure we need to get Britain out of the EU on the best possible terms.
She has come across as a leader with sound morals and steely resolve, a woman of integrity who understands the fundamental importance of our democracy and of respecting the will of the people.
Putting the three Brexiteers – Boris Johnson, David Davis and Liam Fox – at the heart of government has further reassured those who worried that a prime minister who had backed Remain might seek to overturn the referendum result.
However, we must remember that in Westminster talk is cheap. As home secretary, Mrs May issued plenty of tough rhetoric on immigration while presiding over record numbers of people coming to Britain. And although we have heard lots of strong words from her on the importance of leaving the EU we still know little about the Government’s plans for making Brexit happen.
We do know what the Daily Express and the people of Britain want to see – the return of border controls, the end of Brussels laws taking supremacy over our own and no more extortionate membership fees.
Now Mrs May needs to assure us that when she sits down at the negotiating table there will be no compromise on these terms.
The Prime Minister is surrounded by politicians and peers still desperate for us to stay in the EU. They will be out to make life hell for the Government by doing all they can to frustrate the Brexit process.
Mrs May has to stick to her guns and deliver on her promises.
She should be under no illusion: when it comes to Brexit the reality must match the rhetoric. There can be no backsliding.
The referendum result was conclusive and the wishes of the electorate have been made crystal clear.
This newspaper – on behalf of the more than 17 million people who voted Leave in June – will be watching closely.