European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

2nd reading: House of Commons & Programme motion: House of Commons
Tuesday 22nd October 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

For the clarification of the right hon. Gentleman—I know he realises this already—there are no checks GB-NI. There will be some light—touch measures to ensure there is no illegal trade—[Laughter]—in endangered animal species and banned firearms, which I think he would agree was sensible. The most important point is that even these measures evaporate and are terminated automatically. They automatically dissolve unless a majority of the Northern Ireland Assembly in Stormont votes to keep them.

Furthermore, to get to the right hon. Gentleman’s point, there is a further sense in which these measures are transitory. They all may be replaced in the great work of beginning the free trade agreement and the new partnership that we intend to build between the UK and the EU—a work in which I devoutly hope Northern Irish Members will be involved in building a whole UK-whole world free trade policy. That is the prize before us. The UK, and the UK alone, will control these vital standards as we leave.

For those who share my belief in the transformative power of free trade, perhaps the single greatest engine of global prosperity, a new deal, enabled by this Bill, will allow us to sign free trade agreements around the world.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (LD)]

Schedule 5A to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 lists workers’ retained European Union rights. The directive on work-life balance for parents and carers is omitted from the schedule, along with many others in the same vein. How can those omissions be consistent with the Prime Minister’s commitment to the highest possible standards for workers’ rights?

[The Prime Minister]

We have been very clear that we will maintain the highest possible standards, but I am very happy to study what the hon. Lady says and can assure her that whatever the House believes has been omitted can easily be replaced.

Brexit Negotiations

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

Thursday 3rd October 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

What the people of this country want is their democratic will respected and for us to get Brexit done, and that is what we are going to do.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (LD)]

This morning’s negative response from both the business community in Northern Ireland and the majority of the political parties there indicates that the Prime Minister has a great deal of work to do if he is to gain the consent of the people of Northern Ireland for his proposals. Does he not recognise that, if he fails to gain the consent of the people of Northern Ireland, he runs a significant risk of visiting damage on the Good Friday agreement, in both letter and spirit?

[The Prime Minister]

I appreciate that point. The hon. Lady is absolutely right to emphasise the importance of getting consensus in Northern Ireland, but that is why we place so much emphasis in these proposals on consent, and that will be a key part of the discussions.

Prime Minister's Update

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

Wednesday 25th September 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

As I have said several times, the court did not impugn in any way the Government’s motives. It is open to test what the hon. Gentleman says in a general election, if he wants.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (LD)]

In the event that the provisions of the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 2) Act 2019 are triggered because of a failure to bring a deal back to the House, will the Prime Minister commit to obeying not only the letter of that law, but its spirit as well?

[The Prime Minister]

We need to get on and deliver a deal. In any event, we will obey the law and we will not extend.

Government Policy on Russia

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

Tuesday 6th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Boris Johnson]

If the hon. Lady will forgive me, she makes a good point, but we must really await the outcome of the investigation before we begin to draw conclusions with our friends.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Lab)]

Russia has conducted cyber-attacks against European countries, invaded the sovereign territory of Ukraine, abducted an Estonian border guard, and murdered people on British soil. Given Putin’s strategy of divide and rule, does the Foreign Secretary not agree that the UK response to Russian aggression needs to be robust, but, to be most effective, should it not also command the support not just of his party and the Government, but the whole of this Parliament?

[Boris Johnson]

I very much agree with both the manner and the content of what the hon. Lady has said, and I know that she speaks for the vast majority of people in both Houses of Parliament.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

Monday 13th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Boris Johnson]

My hon. Friend brings great experience and understanding of these issues and of difficult consular cases, and he is absolutely right that sometimes a quiet approach and quiet diplomacy can yield great results.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Lab)]

I agree with the Government that the only thing that matters is that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe is taken out of prison because she is wrongly incarcerated, but that does depend on the Foreign Secretary raising his game, as Amnesty International suggested earlier this year, so will he commit after having met Richard Ratcliffe to come back to this place and make a statement making it absolutely clear that he will now do everything in his power to get Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe home?

[Boris Johnson]

I am not certain that it would be right—or even if you would grant me permission, Mr Speaker—to make another statement after meeting Mr Ratcliffe, but I can tell the House that I believe it certainly would be appropriate to make a statement following any trip to Iran it might be possible to organise.

US Immigration Policy

Debate between Boris Johnson and Angela Smith

Monday 30th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[Boris Johnson]

The reality is that conversations between the new Administration and the UK Government have been going on for many months. I have to say that we became aware of the policy when it was enacted by the President on Friday evening, and since then we have worked very hard to secure the exemptions and protections that we now have.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Lab)]

Given that the Foreign Secretary has said today that the US President’s policy is “divisive, discriminatory and wrong”, can the House safely assume that he will strengthen any representations he makes to our friends in the US on this policy by working closely in co-operation and partnership with our counterparts in the European Union and the Council of Europe?

[Boris Johnson]

We already work very closely—hand in glove, cheek by jowl, locked at the hip—with our friends and partners in the EU on matters of common foreign and security policy, and by the way we will continue to do so once we have left the European Union.