Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of negotiating a series of bilateral agreements on citizens' rights and other potential areas of common understanding with the EU in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Robin Walker
The Government has set out a unilateral offer to protect the rights of EU citizens living in the UK in all scenarios, and has been urging all Member States to do the same for UK nationals living in their countries.
Despite the welcome progress made by some Member States to protect the rights of UK nationals in their countries, there are other areas where the offer to UK nationals falls short, particularly in relation to healthcare. This is why the Government supported the objective of the Costa amendment on the 27 February, as a ring-fenced agreement would achieve our aim of providing certainty to citizens whatever the outcome of negotiations. The Government is now writing to the EU institutions seeking clarity on their position in regards to ring-fencing the citizens’ rights part of the Withdrawal Agreement.
If a joint UK-EU commitment to ring-fence citizens cannot be achieved, protecting the rights of UK nationals in the EU would, in a no deal, ultimately be a matter for the EU and individual Member States. We are urging them to take all necessary measures to do so. The Foreign Secretary has written to all of his counterparts, and the Government is holding further urgent discussions with Member States to seek assurances on the rights of UK nationals in the EU.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what plans he has to negotiate a separate transition period with the EU in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Robin Walker
The Implementation Period - as set out in Part Four of the Withdrawal Agreement - is intended to give businesses and citizens certainty. Without a Withdrawal Agreement, there can be no Implementation Period. That is why we are working with the EU so Parliament can support a deal and the UK can leave the EU in a smooth and orderly way on 29 March 2019.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on negotiations on fishing policy after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
We continue to have regular conversations with ministerial colleagues across Government on all aspects of exiting the EU, including on fisheries policy.
The Government has been absolutely clear that as we leave the EU, we will be become an independent coastal state. For the first time in more than 40 years, we will introduce our own independent fisheries policy and decide who can fish in our waters, and on what terms.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the potential financial effects of the backstop on UK trading opportunities with the rest of the world after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Robin Walker
The UK will be able to negotiate, sign and ratify free trade agreements with rest of world partners and, if the backstop were to come into force following the Implementation Period, implement any elements that do not affect the functioning of the backstop. The backstop is not something that either the UK or the EU would ever want to come into force and, if it were to come into effect, both sides have been clear it should only be in place for a short time. The UK and EU are also legally obliged under the Protocol to use their best endeavours to facilitate trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, recognising the importance of that trade.
The Government’s long term economic analysis considers both the costs and benefits of moving to new trading relationships with the EU, and opportunities for ambitious new trade deals with new partners in the rest of the world. The analysis shows that the proposed deal is the best deal available for jobs and our economy that allows us to honour the result of the referendum and realise the opportunities of EU exit. The analysis can be found at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/760484/28_November_EU_Exit_-_Long-term_economic_analysis__1_.pdf
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will (a) withdraw the Technical Note on External Security published on 24 May 2018 and (b) ensure that the UK Government does not give the EU control of UK national security assets after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
The UK’s proposal for future security cooperation with the EU, as set out in the Technical Note on External Security, is aligned with the Government’s White Paper on the Future Relationship published on 12 July 2018, and reflected in the Political Declaration on the Framework for the Future Relationship.
The future relationship on foreign policy, defence and development is based on a flexible relationship, which enables us to activate and intensify UK-EU cooperation during a crisis or on a shared priority, where it is in our mutual interest. The UK will make independent choices in foreign policy, defence and development, and our national security will remain the sole responsibility of the UK.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the UK leaving the customs union on trade between the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
Answered by Steve Baker
As the Prime Minister made clear, the UK does not seek membership of the EU’s Single Market after we leave the EU, but rather a bold and ambitious FTA as part of a new, deep and special partnership. The deeply integrated nature of trade, both domestically between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, and across the land border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, highlights why the UK is prioritising finding a solution that protects businesses’ ability to access these markets and avoid a return to a hard border.
In our position paper on Northern Ireland and Ireland we have put forward our key principles for delivering our shared objective for a seamless and frictionless land border. We are committed to working with the EU to find a creative solution that recognises the particular economic, social and cultural context of the land border with Ireland that allows current trade and everyday movements across the border to continue as they do today.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether he has met jointly with representatives of Gibraltar and Spain to discuss the negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Robin Walker
We have not met jointly. We are committed to full engagement with the Government of Gibraltar through the Joint Ministerial Council (Gibraltar EU Negotiations) which has met three times including most recently on Monday 17 July. We have been clear in our conversations with Spain that Gibraltar is covered by our exit negotiations and we will have full regard for their interests.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, when he last discussed cross-border issues resulting from the UK leaving the EU with representatives from the Republic of Ireland.
Answered by David Jones
The Prime Minister has met with the Taoiseach three times and the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU met with Irish Ministers, including the Taoiseach, Tanaiste, Foreign and Europe Ministers, in Dublin last September.
The Government remains committed to working with the Irish Government. As the Prime Minister said in her Lancaster House speech and the Government set out in the White Paper, maintaining our strong and historic ties with Ireland will be an important priority for the UK in the talks ahead.