Brexit: Commonwealth, Trade and Migration

Lord Pearson of Rannoch Excerpts

Monday 13th March 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Anderson of Swansea (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Pearson of Rannoch (UKIP)]

My Lords—

[The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Evans of Bowes Park) (Con)]

My Lords, we will hear from the UKIP representative.

[Lord Pearson of Rannoch]

My Lords, do the Government agree that the EU single market will continue in long-term and irreversible decline, whereas the Commonwealth contains many of the markets of the future?

[Lord Price]

I thank the noble Lord for his question. I am not able to predict the future of any part of the world, but I can say that the UK’s trade outside the EU has grown more quickly in recent years. Over the last five years or so it has grown by 6% inside the EU but by more than 14% outside it. We therefore feel very optimistic that in a new world of trading more powerfully individually outside the EU we can boost UK exports.