UK’s Withdrawal from the EU
Wednesday, 13 February 2019
Research briefings
I have provisionally selected the following amendments in the following order: (a) in the name of...
I beg to move,
That this House welcomes the Prime Minister’s statement of 12 February 2019;...
Show all contributions (311)
Given the debate and dispute about the meaning of the Government’s motion, will my right hon. Fri...
I am very happy to give my right hon. Friend and predecessor in this role that assurance. The Cab...
The Secretary of State has set out why he is observing what the House said on alternative arrange...
The short answer is that the House has said two different things. It passed by a big majority leg...
I encourage the Government to keep their nerve during these negotiations. I accept that the vast ...
My hon. Friend, as a former member of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, knows all about holding hi...
I think we all agree about the importance of keeping our nerve, and keeping no deal on the table ...
For the avoidance of doubt, I am happy to confirm that, because that is what the legislation says...
My right hon. Friend was just moving on to an alternative, but it seems to me that he has just gi...
Although I obviously respect the considerable experience of the Father of the House, I frankly do...
The Prime Minister met hon. Members in the Boothroyd Room before the first vote, which she lost b...
Given the propensity of the Scottish National party to have referendums and not respect the resul...
I very much want to see a deal done. It is in the interests of the country, and it is definitely ...
As is so often the case, my right hon. Friend reflects a sentiment that one hears expressed in th...
Of course we want to get a deal with the European Union, but is not taking no deal off the table ...
The right hon. Gentleman is right on both points. First, it is important that we have no deal on ...
If I can make some progress, I will come on to the discussions the right hon. Gentleman mentioned...
I will make some progress, and then will happily take further interventions. A number of interven...
I am going to make a little progress, and then I will happily take further interventions.
T...
Given that the European Union is saying that it will not entertain any legal changes to the withd...
I am going to come on that exact issue. The hon. Gentleman cited at the start of his intervention...
Further to the Secretary of State’s answer to the right hon. Member for Haltemprice and Howden (M...
Again, what I set out was that we are 100% committed to the position set out and agreed by the Ca...
The reality is that the vote against no deal in this House was more convincingly passed, includin...
Again, I very much respect the position of my right hon. Friend. I suspect that, on this, we will...
I support the Prime Minister’s deal. I want us to get a deal. But I am looking very closely at th...
First, I absolutely respect votes of this House. Indeed, when we had, for example, the Humble Add...
We can’t hear you.
Order. Can I just appeal to the Secretary of State? He is, in my experience, a most courteous ind...
I absolutely accept your direction on that point, Mr Speaker. I was seeking to engage with my rig...
I have taken quite a few interventions and I will make a bit of progress, not least because I am ...
Will my right hon. Friend confirm that using techniques and technology that already exist at the ...
I agree. That is already agreed by the European Union and the United Kingdom in its reflection in...
Is it now Government policy to take forward the Malthouse compromise that we have all read about?...
I can confirm that we have taken it forward to the European Union, in that I have raised it with ...
The Secretary of State just told the House that he has put proposals to Michel Barnier. Can he th...
One should always be slightly cautious about what is said on Twitter, and that applies even to so...
The task that the Secretary of State has set out in terms of the alternatives is large, and the w...
I respect my hon. Friend’s point, but what I hear from many, particularly in the business communi...
I am grateful to the Secretary of State for giving way, although he may not be so grateful for th...
I looked with interest at the hon. Lady’s reference in the Brexit Select Committee to the Belfast...
The amendment that the House passed, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Altrincham and Sale ...
I have already confirmed to the House that this issue has been raised with Michel Barnier. I have...
I have taken a lot of interventions. I am conscious that many other Members wish to speak, includ...
I rise to support amendment (a) in my name and that of the Leader of the Opposition. The Secretar...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will in a minute.
And the Prime Minister returned with nothing—warm words in the margins ...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will in just a minute.
Two weeks after that, on 29 January, the Prime Minister voted for ...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will give way in just a minute.
The amendment called for the backstop to be replaced with...
Can the right hon. and learned Gentleman not understand the nonsense of his own argument? He sugg...
I am grateful for that intervention: I think the hon. Gentleman has missed the point. The Prime M...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will just make the next point and then I will give way.
The idea that the vote on 29 Janu...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will in just one minute.
On Tuesday, in another non-update from the Prime Minister, she s...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I will in just a second.
The third option—alternative arrangements—remains undefined, and w...
May I commend the right hon. and learned Gentleman for his courage and bravery in standing up for...
I am grateful for the concern, and I am getting on fine, thanks very much. I will tell the hon. G...
Are not all these meetings and activity that my right hon. and learned Friend is outlining, when ...
I completely agree with that intervention and that observation.
My right hon. and learned Friend has been talking to businesses, as I have. Does he agree that th...
I do agree with that. One of the things that saddens me most from the discussions I have had in t...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
I promised I would give way to the hon. Gentleman.
Is not the thing this House has to understand that the backstop is there in case the Malthouse co...
The EU has been very clear about the backstop. It is to be observed that there are hon. Members w...
I will just make a bit of progress on this point.
So it goes on, and so it will go on. The ...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is making a powerful point, as always, about the ineptitude ...
I have sympathy with the point that we will need an extension to article 50 sooner or later, whet...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is being generous with his time. In contrast to what he just...
As for the Prime Minister taking us out of the EU on 29 March this year without a deal—we’ll see ...
My right hon. and learned Friend is right in what he says about business and the need for clarity...
I am grateful for that intervention, and my right hon. Friend puts his finger on it.
Is my right hon. and learned Friend as astonished as I am that we have a Prime Minister and Gover...
It is a gamble—
I will make some progress. I have taken a lot of interventions, and I will take some more in a mi...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is being extraordinarily generous in giving way. No self-res...
I do not know how to let the hon. Gentleman down gently, but let me try this: we are so patently ...
I will give way to the hon. Member for St Albans (Mrs Main).
I thank the right hon. and learned Gentleman so much for giving way—I was beginning to think I ha...
I am sure the question of policy is important, but I am facing the practical reality. We are 43 d...
I am going to make some progress. Labour’s amendment is intended to put a hard stop to running do...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is making a strong point about the perils of no deal. Does h...
I agree and I am grateful for that intervention. That is really the point. If it is not credible ...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is right to say that business wants certainty—he has made bi...
Well, I am not going to take that lying down for this reason: on the Government Benches, did they...
I am going to make some progress and then I will give way again.
Therefore, we need to take...
I have listened carefully today. In defence of the Secretary of State, he has made it quite clear...
I am. Happily, we discussed that at our party conference and agreed unanimously—something I do no...
Excuse me, I have a bit of a head cold. The amount of white flags being thrown would give anyone ...
The position of the Labour party is that we have concerns about the backstop. [Interruption.] Thi...
I thank the shadow Brexit Secretary for allowing me to intervene on that very important point. He...
I am grateful for that intervention. As the hon. Lady knows, I worked in Northern Ireland for fiv...
I thank the right hon. and learned Gentleman for giving way because I actually find that I agree ...
I am not sure the hon. Lady carefully read the proposition we were voting for on the meaningful v...
Is the right hon. and learned Gentleman able to clarify in plain English at what point the Leader...
The policy we have adopted is clear about what the options are. What we are trying to do today is...
The backstop is taking up a lot of the discussion today because it is incredibly important. May I...
I am grateful for that intervention. One of the central problems in all this is that the politica...
Following my right hon. and learned Friend’s replies to the hon. Members for Bracknell (Dr Lee) a...
I am grateful for that point. What I will say is this—
Just as I am about to give the answer I am asked from a sedentary position what the answer is. Pe...
I just want to complete this point, because it is important. The Prime Minister has replied in no...
My right hon. and learned Friend is making some important and good points about the Prime Ministe...
I do not think I need to associate with or dissociate from anybody on what my views are. I think ...
I am going to make some progress and then I will take more interventions. I have taken a lot of i...
Will the right hon. and learned Gentleman give way?
Not at the moment.
The hard stop would ensure that on 27 February the Prime Minister must e...
Will my right hon. and learned Friend clarify something for me? I am sympathetic to and almost su...
As I have said from this Dispatch Box, so far as the extension is concerned, it obviously depends...
We have moved to yet another of these almost weekly engagements, at which we are told that histor...
I agree with everything that my right hon. and learned Friend has said. Does he agree that a very...
I think I agree with that; I cannot give an off-the-cuff response to my right hon. Friend’s detai...
My right hon. and learned Friend referred to legislation. Of course, he voted for the Third Readi...
Government and Parliament can at any time produce legislation to reform previous legislation beca...
Will my right hon. and learned Friend give way?
I will give way to my right hon. Friend—my best friend among all these arch-remainers, who are ot...
I will not give way any more. I have great respect for my hon. Friend, so I hope that I will not ...
I rise to speak to our amendment (i), standing in my name and that of my right hon. Friend the Me...
I want to ask the hon. Gentleman a similar question to the one I put to those on our Front Bench....
I think that option has to be open, but it will be very difficult, because the Europeans have alr...
Does the hon. Gentleman accept that the Speaker has ruled that all these motions are advisory, in...
I do not accept the argument that says, “Because the vote was close,” or, “Because the legislatio...
I could not give a speech without giving way to the hon. Gentleman.
I am very grateful to the hon. Gentleman for giving way. He is quite right that the vast majority...
It really is a bit cheeky to criticise the First Minister of Scotland for missing one meeting whe...
I thank my hon. Friend for making such a powerful case. Colleagues on the Government Benches have...
I never give up on the possibility of anybody in this House or elsewhere finally seeing sense and...
The hon. Gentleman has reminded me of the party manifesto, on which I apparently I stood and whic...
That is certainly an interesting proposal. Let me say that each and every time I have stood for e...
Given the hon. Gentleman’s comments about Jaguar Land Rover, will he join me in welcoming its dec...
I welcome any investment, but unfortunately employees in other parts of the Jaguar Land Rover net...
Will my hon. Friend give way?
I really must make progress, because other Members want to speak. [Interruption.] I am grateful t...
The hon. Gentleman has cited the Belfast agreement, and has talked of its falling and smashing on...
Yes, I have read the Belfast agreement, and with all due respect, if it comes to any arguments ab...
Will my hon. Friend give way?
I really must wind up my speech.
We are nowhere near ready to leave on 29 March without a d...
It is, as always, a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Glenrothes (Peter Grant).
I beli...
The right hon. Gentleman says that a deal can still be negotiated. Given that one of the reasons ...
The hon. Gentleman raises a perfectly respectable point, but the head of HMRC has said there woul...
Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?
No, as I have undertaken to proceed swiftly to the end so that other Members can speak.
I w...
My fear is that we are just drifting—that we are stuck in limbo on something that is going to hav...
The right hon. Lady might recall that in November, the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Commit...
We should take very seriously the warnings about a reduction of up to 80% in the volume of goods ...
Did the right hon. Lady hear a couple of days ago that the food industry is saying that it can no...
That is really troubling, and it is now happening right across industry and across every sector. ...
Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is the Prime Minister’s red lines, including not meeting ...
I agree with my hon. Friend that the Prime Minister has to change her red lines, particularly aro...
Will the right hon. Lady give way?
I will not; I need to conclude my remarks.
It is as though we are all just standing around ...
Order. An eight minute limit on each Back-Bench speech now applies.
2.16 pm
I rise to support the amendment in my name and those of many hon. and right hon. Members from all...
My right hon. Friend is being very informative. Is she prepared to tell us whether she has seen t...
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her intervention. I hope that she will take me at my word. Al...
Will my right hon. Friend give way?
I will take one short intervention.
My right hon. Friend is being generous with her time. I do not agree with her, although I do resp...
I would not disagree with my hon. Friend at all. I have indeed seen those very same papers myself...
Will the right hon. Lady give way?
I will not, just because I am running out of time and I want to make several important points.
What a mess. What a complete and utter mess our country is in. There are just 43 days to go befor...
Further to the point my right hon. Friend is making, last year there was all this discussion of t...
My hon. Friend is, of course, entirely right. Nothing I heard from the Prime Minister on Tuesday ...
Just a slight nuance on the earlier debate. The European Union is not so rude as to say that it h...
The backstop is, indeed, an insurance policy, and we cannot put a time limit on it, because it wo...
I suspect the Prime Minister knows that the advice from the Law Officers is that to create a hard...
I can only bow in admiration to the clarity with which the right hon. and learned Gentleman makes...
It is traditional in this House to say it is a pleasure to follow the previous speaker; it really...
Would the right hon. Gentleman like to reiterate that in a fortnight’s time, it really will be hi...
The right hon. Gentleman, who was a colleague of mine in the coalition Government, and to whom I ...
As ever, my right hon. Friend is giving a passionate and brilliant speech and statement of the si...
I most fervently believe that they should be published; much more information on the no-deal exit...
I applaud the right hon. Member for West Dorset (Sir Oliver Letwin) for seeking leadership and de...
We have got the Faroe Islands.
We do have the Faroe Islands, but the deals with Turkey, Japan, South Korea and Canada will not b...
I have been sounding the alarm for the car industry for some time. Of course, its challenges are ...
The right hon. Lady and my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) have do...
West midlands MPs from across the political divide have sounded the alarm together for the jobs t...
The right hon. Lady is absolutely right that this uncertainty is causing huge problems for the Br...
I could not agree more. We need to heed businesses that say that the deal may not be perfect, but...
Will my right hon. Friend give way?
I will not give way again.
More importantly, will other countries hosting UK citizens have ...
The Prime Minister’s own personal approach to Brexit has created what 40 former ambassadors have ...
Does the hon. Lady also take the view that given the result of the general election, which result...
Not to my surprise, I find myself agreeing with the observations of the right hon. Lady. The only...
It is a pleasure to be called to speak in this important EU withdrawal debate, particularly after...
The problem with this “walk away” analogy is that in any other negotiation when someone walks awa...
I am very grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for mentioning the status quo, because I do not th...
My hon. Friend very clearly makes the point that we did not vote for the status quo. It is quite ...
I think people in this country have rejected the status quo, and I see Brexit as an opportunity f...
My hon. Friend is making a typically powerful speech. Can he think of anything more craven than f...
We have seen significant majorities both in favour of leaving the European Union, in that about 8...
Will my hon. Friend give way?
I do not have any time; I do apologise.
Actually, yes, I will give way very briefly.
Can my hon. Friend remind us of the promises made by the leave campaign, which he supported? It r...
I never made that promise when I supported leaving the European Union. I believe that a deal is t...
I thank my hon. Friend for reminding us of what was said in the past. The Conservative party mani...
Yes, we absolutely should be seeking and honouring a deep and close relationship with our neighbo...
In just 43 days we are set to crash out with no deal, yet the Prime Minister and those on the Gov...
On that point, have we not, as a member of the European Union, been at the forefront of combating...
I thank my hon. Friend for that excellent point. The Government, in tearing apart all the brillia...
The two previous motions, one in the name of my hon. Friend the Member for Altrincham and Sale We...
Does my hon. Friend agree that, were we to make the mistake of saying that we rule out leaving wi...
My right hon. Friend is absolutely right.
On the amendment tabled by my right hon. Friend t...
The Prime Minister asks us to hold our nerve and give her time. One has to ask: more time for wha...
It is a great pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Arfon (Hywel Williams). While I agree with W...
Will my hon. Friend confirm that, because the agreement is not about the future partnership, it s...
I am grateful for my right hon. Friend’s intervention. I will deal with that issue in a minute, b...
Does the hon. Gentleman agree that it would be most useful before the conclusion of tonight’s deb...
I am very grateful for that intervention from the very sound colleagues on the DUP Benches. Of co...
No, it is not rubbish, it is nonsense. But the hon. Lady can use the word “rubbish” as well—which...
Order. Let me say in the most affectionate possible terms to the hon. Member for Huddersfield (Mr...
He is very irritating.
Order. The hon. Gentleman says that the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr Bone) is “very irritat...
I can assure you, Mr Speaker, that I am not a snowflake, so I will not take offence from the hon....
Poverty drove my parents to emigrate from rural Ireland to this country. This country gave them e...
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech. Does he remember the words of the right hon. Member f...
My hon. Friend makes a powerful point. Jaguar Land Rover—the Jaguar plant in my constituency and ...
The hon. Gentleman reads out those statistics about the problems, but the fact is that we have th...
Come to Erdington, where we still have one in 10 out of work, with unemployment rising. When we t...
It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey); I agreed enti...
Order. After the hon. Member for Wirral South (Alison McGovern), the time limit will have to be r...
It is truly an honour to follow the right hon. and learned Member for Beaconsfield (Mr Grieve). I...
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech. We are now in “Project Reality”, not “Project Fear”. ...
I simply listen to the words of the right hon. Member for Meriden (Dame Caroline Spelman) and my ...
Over the past three years, those of us who voted for Brexit have been treated with scorn and cont...
I assure the hon. Gentleman from direct personal knowledge that the story I told earlier, of Kare...
I do not know the hon. Gentleman’s constituent, but my wife is an EU national, although she would...
The theme of my remarks is that we need to build consensus, although I must confess that the spee...
My hon. Friend may have seen that today’s Evening Standard is reporting that Westfield’s £1.4 bil...
My hon. Friend has given yet another example. During February, the Financial Times has had headli...
The hon. Lady is arguing articulately for the scheme she put forward and persuaded me to join her...
The right hon. and learned Gentleman is absolutely correct, because a lot of gamesmanship is goin...
It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman). While listening t...
I just want to pull up the hon. Gentleman on that point. He said that Europe was in relative decl...
The hon. Gentleman raises an interesting point. The fact is that Europe is becoming relatively le...
Will the hon. Gentleman tell us what his constituents think we should be getting on with? As thin...
They are telling me very clearly that we should leave the European Union. Personally, I think tha...
Interventions are of course part and parcel of debate, but I simply say for the purposes of advic...
It has now been 67 days since the Prime Minister delayed the meaningful vote in December—67 utter...
One thing that has struck me during this debate is the almost complete absence of taking into con...
Well, 43 days to go and here we are—still pretty clueless in the House of Commons. When people as...
The hon. Gentleman is making a valid point—he is giving strong reasons why we should have a deal....
The hon. Gentleman should know that we have a deal at the moment with the European Union. It is a...
Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
I am happy to give way to the hon. Gentleman. Can he guarantee that all chemicals will be availab...
I am concerned at the view that businesses in Scotland will go to the wall. Having spoken to busi...
They have been working within a deal, which is why I want us to revoke article 50. I thank the ho...
Let me concentrate, in the minutes I have, on some of the essential points. When I regretfully vo...
I am not going to give way to my right hon. Friend because I think you are very keen, Mr Speaker,...
May I welcome the assurances that the Secretary of State gave in a very clear way from the Dispat...
That could all be solved if the whole UK stayed in the customs union and had the same regulatory ...
The whole point is that Northern Ireland would be treated separately from the rest of the United ...
The clock is ticking down, both in this debate and towards 29 March, and it is imperative for the...
I came into the Chamber earlier today during business questions and the hon. Member for Coventry ...
Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?
I will not give way.
The second thing we need to do today is come out very strongly in favo...
It is a privilege to follow on from such excellent contributions; among the finest speeches were ...
Order. Quite a lot of noisy men are wittering away to each other and are not listening to the hon...
Mr Speaker, I am grateful. An extension might buy more time, but ultimately this House needs to b...
I thank the Opposition Front-Bench spokesman, the hon. Member for Darlington (Jenny Chapman), for...
I am grateful for the Minister’s comments, and congratulate him on what I think is his first spee...
I thank my right hon. Friend for that clarification.
This afternoon continued the tradition...
Will the Minister take this opportunity to confirm that the Government have started to draft text...
As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has said, we have three options to deliver on the will...
Sorry, I am afraid I do not have time.
However, this Government do not want to have to util...
I am afraid I am not going to give way.
As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has cons...
I understood from the exchange the right hon. Member for Broxtowe (Anna Soubry) had with the Unde...
It is, Mr Speaker, on this occasion; I am sure we can sort it all out.
Main Question put.
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Tonight’s vote shows that there is no majority for the Prime Min...
It is not obligatory for the Prime Minister to be present on this occasion. Other representatives...
indicated dissent.
Or if the Government Chief Whip, who is chuntering from a sedentary position for no obvious benef...
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. This is a significant defeat for the Government. This is a boura...
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his point of order. In responding to him, I am seek...
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I suspect that if the Secretary of State, in opening the debate,...
A Member from Ealing who will be well known to colleagues—the hon. Member for Ealing North (Steph...
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. What we do know tonight is that there is a majority in this Hous...
The hon. Gentleman is a county colleague of mine, but that is a truly monstrous abuse of the poin...