Hardliners claim: May won’t sell us out on the customs union
Like a gangster movie scene, Brexiteers on march in Whitehall
BREXITEERS yesterday boasted of securing pledges from Theresa May that could see a Brexit deal passed by Parliament.
Eurosceptic MPs who met her left Downing Street in upbeat mood, saying she had vowed not to bow to pressure from Cabinet Remainers to accept Labour’s idea of a permanent customs union.
Nigel Evans, one of 118 Tory MPs who voted against Mrs May on Tuesday, said: ‘The Prime Minister is listening. She wants to get Brexit over the line and she is listening to our concerns.’
A former Cabinet minister added: ‘It was good and positive – we are getting onto the same page. I am more optimistic now – I think she will get a deal through. She made it very clear to us that she is not going to have a customs union deal, whatever some people in Cabinet might want.’
It came as Mrs May held a full day of meetings with MPs from across the Brexit divide in a bid to revive her deal with the EU which was resoundingly rejected in the Commons on Tuesday.
Former Brexit Secretary David Davis and former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith were among the members of the European Research Group invited for talks.
The hardline Brexit group played a key role in the Commons defeat.
Former Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers was also present, as was former culture secretary John Whittingdale, who tweeted afterwards that their group’s meeting with the Prime Minister had been ‘constructive’.
Former Tory cabinet minister Mr Paterson described the meeting as ‘thoroughly worthwhile’, very constructive’ and a ‘good exchange’.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, chairman of the ERG, also gave the first hint that there might be circumstances in which he could back a version of Mrs May’s deal.
He said that, unlike some Eurosceptics, he would prefer to leave with the PM’s deal than stay in the EU.
‘If I was asked to rank the options in order of preference, then no deal would be better than Mrs May’s deal and Mrs May’s deal would be better than not leaving at all,’ he added. ‘I don’t agree with those who say the deal is so bad it would be worse than staying in.’
His stance opens up the possibility that like-minded Eurosceptics might be persuaded to eventually back a version of Mrs May’s withdrawal deal if Remainers in Parliament find a way of blocking a nodeal Brexit.
However, Mr Rees-Mogg said the chances of former Tory ministers like Nick Boles and Dominic Grieve succeeding in their bid to block no deal were ‘very, very remote.’
Downing Street declined to comment on the detail of the talks, which were described as ‘constructive’.
Following the defeat of Mrs May’s deal on Tuesday, senior Tories have been horribly split over what to do next. Several Cabinet ministers wasted no time in urging Mrs May to abandon one of her key red lines and adopt a formal customs union with the EU.
Former Remainers including Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd, Justice Secretary David Gauke, Business Secretary Greg Clarke and Chancellor Philip Hammond all want Mrs May to adopt a softer Brexit in an attempt to bring Labour MPs on board.
But the move has sparked furious opposition from a second Cabinet faction including Treasury chief Secretary Liz Truss, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, Trade Secretary Liam Fox and Transport Secretary Chris Grayling.
Mr Grayling warned that moving to a full customs union would mean having to accept more single market rules, including free movement of workers.