Boris Johnson resignation letter
“It is more than two years since the British people voted to leave the European Union on an unambiguous and categorical promise that if they did so they would be taking back control of their democracy.
“They were told that they would be able to manage their own immigration policy, repatriate the sums of UK cash currently spent by the EU and, above all, that they would be able to pass laws independently and in the interests of the people of this country.
“Brexit should be about opportunity and hope. It should be a chance to do things differently, to be more nimble and dynamic, and to maximise the particular advantages of the UK as an open, outward-looking global economy.
“That dream is dying, suffocated by needless selfdoubt.
“We have postponed crucial decisions, including the preparations for no deal, as I argued in my letter to you of last November, with the result that we appear to be heading for a semi-brexit, with large parts of the economy still locked in the EU system, but with no UK control over that system.
“It now seems that the opening bid of our negotiations involves accepting that we are not actually going to be able to make our own laws. Indeed we seem to have gone backwards since the last Chequers meeting …
“What is even more disturbing is this is our opening bid. This is already how we see the end state for the UK – before the other side has made its counter-offer. It is as though we are sending our vanguard into battle with the white flags fluttering above them.
“I was concerned, looking at Friday’s document, that there might be further concessions on immigration or that we might end up effectively paying for access to the single market.
“On Friday, I acknowledged that my side of the argument were too few to prevail and congratulated you on at least reaching a Cabinet decision on the way forward. As I said then, the government now has a song to sing.
“The trouble is that I have practiced the words over the weekend and find that they stick in the throat. We must have collective responsibility. Since I cannot in all conscience champion these proposals, I have sadly concluded that I must go.”