United Kingdom’s Withdrawal from the European Union

David Jones Excerpts

Friday 29th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr David Jones (Clwyd West) (Con)]

Today’s debate is proceeding for one reason only. It is not being held, as my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney General acknowledged, with a view to delivering a positive meaningful vote for the purposes of the withdrawal Act. Indeed, it is hard to see how another meaningful vote could be held, since there has been no change whatever to the withdrawal agreement, which was so convincingly rejected by the House only two weeks ago.

The European Union has made it clear that the withdrawal agreement cannot be reopened, and you have made it absolutely clear, Mr Speaker, that you would not countenance the rejected motion being put to the House again. The motion before us does not fulfil the statutory requirements of the Act. We are being asked to approve it for one reason only: to keep the clock ticking, to ensure that that can that has been so repeatedly kicked does not complete its progress down the road on 12 April but bumps along a bit until 22 May. To be fair to the Government, they openly acknowledge that that is the case. However, they also say, ostensibly and illogically, that we are today considering the withdrawal agreement separately from the political declaration. That is not the case, and it is illogical to say that it is, because the political declaration is incorporated by reference into the body of the withdrawal agreement. It is there in black and white, in article 184. In reality, we are considering the political declaration today. In reality, we are considering the whole package that we rejected by 149 votes only a few days ago.

This was to be the day when we celebrated—or lamented, depending on one’s point of view—the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. It could have been the moment when we put the travails of the last three fractious years behind us, but it is not. Humiliatingly, we are going through today’s exercise because the Government have been told by the European Union that we have until 22 May to sign up to the withdrawal agreement, but only if it is approved by the House by 11 pm tonight. If anything had changed, I would possibly have been inclined to consider supporting the motion today. If it had changed, like Keynes, I might have been prepared to consider changing my own mind, but nothing has changed, and therefore I will not.

The truth is that we are being asked to approve this agreement to buy the Government another 40 days. What a dreadful 40 days that would be––40 days of increasing frustration for the British people, who wonder why the steeple bells are not pealing out this evening. It is time to bring this miserable business to an end. It is time to deliver Brexit. I therefore urge all hon. Members to oppose the motion.