Brexit Day dawns
Wales’ political leaders speak out as ‘historic’ new chapter to begin
WALES will remain “open and outward facing” after Brexit, Wales’ First Minister will say today.
Mark Drakeford will use a landmark speech on the day the UK leaves the EU to set out Wales’ future relationship with Europe and the wider world.
With the UK leaving at 11pm, he will say the Welsh Government will continue to stand up for Wales as new trade deals are struck.
It comes as Secretary of State for
Wales Simon Hart said: “Today marks a new chapter in our history as we finally deliver on the decision made by the Welsh people and leave the EU.
“We are leaving as one United Kingdom with a mission to build better infrastructure, make our streets safer, clean up our environment and make our Union stronger. Together, we will unleash the enormous potential of communities across Wales.”
And Prime Minister Boris Johnson insists Brexit marks “not an end but a beginning”.
In what Number 10 billed as an “address to the nation” released an hour before the moment the UK leaves the EU, Mr Johnson is aiming to sound an optimistic note about the future and promise to heal the divides which have been caused in the bitter Brexit battles.
He will say: “Our job as the Government
– my job – is to bring this country together and take us forward.”
He will call Brexit “the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act”.
“It is a moment of real national renewal and change.
“This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances – your family’s life chances – should depend on which part of the
country you grow up in.”
Mr Drakeford will say in his speech at Cardiff Bay’s Pierhead Building: “Today is a day for looking forward, not back.
“Everyone can agree leaving the European Union tonight is an historic turning point for our country. And that’s the theme I want to address today: the future.
“We leave the European Union tonight. But Wales’ European identity continues. We will be a European nation so long as Wales exists.
“We remain open and outwardfacing. Wales remains a European nation and after 11pm tonight that identity becomes more important, not less.”
Yesterday, the First Minister went to Airbus’ Broughton site.
Airbus had expressed concerns about the impact of Brexit, and a no deal Brexit, on the company and wider sector, but after Boris Johnson’s Withdrawal Agreement was detailed, chief executive of Airbus, Guillaume Faury, said “there’s a lot of hope” in the agreement.
Mr Drakeford will say today that the Welsh Government’s longstanding commitment with the company will continue.
“I welcome Airbus’ commitment to working with the Welsh Government to secure the future of its British wing plants and to identify opportunities for expansion in the future,” he will say.
“When the UK officially leaves the
EU tonight, our future economic relationship with the EU will not be settled. We are only at the beginning of the next phase of the negotiations.
“What is crucial now for Airbus, and other employers, businesses and industries is the shape of our future relationship with the EU.
“The forthcoming negotiations will be vitally important to Wales. I repeat my calls that Wales, together with the other devolved administrations, must be fully involved in this process.
“Only we will stand up for Wales. We want the best possible access for all businesses in Wales to the EU so they can trade freely with no barriers or extra costs.”
The Welsh Conservative’s former leader Andrew RT Davies called on politicians on all sides of the debate to put their “shoulder to the wheel” and deliver a brighter future for Wales and the rest of the United Kingdom after more than three-anda-half years of “debate and division”.
The AM for South Wales Central said last night: “As we leave the EU, it’s now incumbent on politicians of all colours to put the rancour and division of the past three years behind us and put our shoulder to the wheel to deliver a brighter future for Wales and the United Kingdom.
“Whilst I fully acknowledge and appreciate ‘Brexit Day’ might not be a moment of celebration for all, we are a great country with great people and communities, and despite our differences that’s something we