European Council

Mark Harper Excerpts

Monday 24th October 2016 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

First of all, as I said in response to the right hon. Member for Doncaster Central (Dame Rosie Winterton), we are looking at the impacts on different parts of the United Kingdom. The premise of the right hon. Gentleman’s question is a false one. He talks about the hard Brexit that the Government are going to take the country into. There is no suggestion of that whatsoever. [Interruption.] The right hon. Gentleman seems to think that all of these matters are binary decisions between either being able to control immigration or having some sort of decent trade arrangements. That is not the case. We are going to be ambitious for what we obtain for the United Kingdom. That means a good trade deal as well as control of immigration.

[Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean) (Con)]

It seems to me that we are much more likely to achieve our foreign policy objectives working together, so I welcome the Prime Minister’s moves to put Russia’s behaviour on the Council’s agenda. She may have noticed the very robust statement at the weekend by the new shadow Secretary of State for Defence condemning Russia’s behaviour. When does she think the Leader of the Opposition will join the shadow Secretary of State in being able to criticise Russia for the indiscriminate bombing taking place in Syria and recognise its part in the Syrian refugee crisis that we are all trying to deal with?

[The Prime Minister]

My right hon. Friend makes a very valid and important point. I note that although the European Council discussed the role that Russia was taking in the indiscriminate bombing in Syria, the Leader of the Opposition failed to refer to Russia and its actions in Syria when he came to the Dispatch Box. I hope he will not be too slow in coming forward and making it clear that he condemns Russia’s activities; otherwise people will assume that he does not.