‘THE PRIME MINISTER SHOULD BE FOCUSED ON UNITING THE COUNTRY’

THE Welsh Government says it has been kept in the dark.

A Welsh Government spokesman said: “We cannot comment in detail before we have seen the full White Paper.

“As the Cabinet Secretary for Finance made clear on Thursday, the UK Government failed to consult us properly in advance on its contents and we are still in the dark on the detailed proposals it will contain: this is clearly unacceptable.

“The Prime Minister should be focused on uniting the country, not just her Cabinet, around a credible negotiating position.

“However, the communiqué suggests there has been at least half a step forwards, particularly in terms of a recognition that our manufacturing and farming industries have nothing to gain, and masses to lose, from moving away from the regulatory environment of the EU. We welcome this change of direction.

“But while full and unfettered access to the single market for goods is absolutely essential, we would like to see the evidence to justify the different approach to services now proposed by the UK Government which will certainly result in increased barriers to trade.

“The suspicion must remain that this has more to do with keeping Liam Fox in his current job than securing the jobs of tens of thousands of workers whose employment depends on exports of financial and professional services to the EU.”