I shall, when the Brexit withdrawal agreement is brought before the House of Commons, support it. 

 

It is not a perfect outcome. No negotiation based upon compromise ever delivers all that either side desires and the Prime Minister’s hand has been consistently undermined by those to Left and Right who have been sniping from the sidelines and by those, like the Mayor of London, Mr Corbyn and others who have engaged in ‘private’ talks with the EU negotiators.

 

Nevertheless, the draft agreement offers a settlement that meets the aspirations of what polls suggest is a majority in the Country if not in Parliament.  It is opposed chiefly by Brexit fundamentalists who want nothing less than a ‘hard Brexit’, by those who see a personal political advantage in damaging the Prime Minister and by those who have bought into misrepresentations of what is actually on offer.

 

The withdrawal agreement - it is a paving measure and there is much work to be done before the final relationship is agreed - achieves most if not all of what the majority who voted to leave the EU thought they were voting for if not quite as immediately as some would wish.  We shall regain control of our own borders and our own immigration policy, the key issue for many that emerged during the referendum campaign.  We shall avoid the ‘cliff edge’ that businesses have feared and that would prove so damaging to the prospects of thousands of jobs.  We will, when and only when a full political determination is achieved, meet our remaining financial obligations at a cost far lower than some had predicted.  We will no longer be subject to the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice and any disputes between Britain and the EU will be resolved by an independent arbitration panel.  We shall leave the Common Agricultural Policy behind us and we shall become an independent coastal state with commitments to ensure sustainable fishing levels and a new fisheries agreement with the EU.  There will be a comprehensive air transport agreement with comparable access for freight operators, buses and coaches.  We shall have the ability to strike trade deals around the world. The rights of more than a million UK citizens living within the EU will be protected, and a bill that will protect healthcare overseas is already before the House of Commons. The final deal will maintain the integrity of the four nations of the United Kingdom, obviate the need for a hard border with the Irish Republic and remove the threat of a border in the Irish Sea.  The much-derided ‘backstop’ will only be needed - and the expectation is that it will not - in the event of a delay in concluding our future relationship with the EU. The idea that we could be left in limbo and held to ransom by the European Commission is, in the view of lawyers who know what they are talking about, quite simply wrong.  Article 50 makes such an arrangement illegal.

 

I have spent part of the past week in Europe engaged in parliamentary business promoting and defending the cause of human rights and it is clear that in other EU countries the concern is that too many concessions, not available under the ‘Canada Plus’ or ‘Norwegian‘ options (neither of which solve the Irish border problem) have been made for Britain. The idea that on the part of the UK it has been ‘all give and no take ‘is simply without foundation.

 

The Prime Minister has said, correctly, that the choices that we face are her Withdrawal Agreement, a No Deal or a No Brexit.  If we are to honour, as we must, the will of the majority of the British people as expressed in the referendum then No Brexit is not an option. At home, the most recent poll suggests that seventy-five per cent of the public would opt for a deal rather than a hard Brexit and that of the remaining twenty-five “get out now” per cent most are approaching or over retirement age.  They have, of course, much less to lose in terms of prosperity and employment than those with their working and family lives still ahead of them.

 

The United Kingdom will leave the European Union at the end of March next year.  What we are discussing is the terms upon which we shall leave.  I believe that the Withdrawal Agreement reached by the Prime Minister and which we expect to be finalised and ratified at the European Council before the end of the month, taken together with the Relationship Agreement that is still being negotiated, offers the best prospect for the future of our sovereignty, our security, our prosperity and the lives of our children and grandchildren. I hope that when the enormity of the decision that is before us becomes a reality in the House of Commons opponents, including the Labour Party, will vote for national rather than for party- political or personal advantage and that common sense will, in the interests of Great Britain, prevail.

​

​

​