Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2017 to Question 8561, what the criteria is for deciding what information, if published, would undermine the ability of the Government to negotiate the best deal for the UK; and which Minister is responsible for making that decision.

As is usual practice, the Government considers the implications of publishing its analysis, including, where appropriate, looking at a range of relevant factors to decide whether it would harm the Government’s negotiating position. The Government respects the role of Parliament in this process and has committed to keeping both Houses informed throughout. However, the Government also takes seriously its commitment not to publish anything that would undermine its negotiating position. Government publications are based on the principle of collective agreement, and therefore the decision to publish Government material is a collective one.