Brexit Transition: European Parliament Membership Debate

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Department: Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit Transition: European Parliament Membership

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Excerpts
Thursday 7th June 2018

(5 years, 11 months ago)

Lords Chamber
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Lord Callanan Portrait Lord Callanan
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We are not doing any contingency planning on it because we are not going to apply for an extension. An extension is not going to be granted because, as I have said on at least three different occasions today, we are leaving on 30 March 2019.

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Portrait Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con)
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Does my noble friend agree, pursuant to the question of the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter, that there would be some merit in allocating observer status to existing Members of the European Parliament, or a number of them, for the very good reasons that my noble friend gave in his question? We should have some democratic representation in the European Parliament at that stage.

Lord Callanan Portrait Lord Callanan
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Whether that would be a good idea or not, it would have to be agreed with the European Parliament and as we will no longer be a member state, I cannot see that Parliament being happy about the prospect of a non-member state sending representatives to it.