EU Exit: Negotiations and the Joint Committee Debate

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Department: Cabinet Office

EU Exit: Negotiations and the Joint Committee

Matt Vickers Excerpts
Monday 19th October 2020

(4 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Michael Gove Portrait Michael Gove
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I know the point that the hon. Gentleman is trying to make, but I think that it is misconceived, and recent events underline that.

Matt Vickers Portrait Matt Vickers (Stockton South) (Con)
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The Government should be congratulated on their trade deal with Japan, the world’s third largest economy. Can my right hon. Friend confirm that, irrespective of a deal with the EU, the UK will continue to pursue trade opportunities with the world’s biggest and fastest-growing economies, including those that might benefit exporters in Stockton South?

Michael Gove Portrait Michael Gove
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and the credit should go to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade. She has not just concluded a free trade agreement with Japan, but has made progress on free trade agreements with Australia, on our accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and on other opportunities for businesses, including those in Stockton South, for which he is such a brilliant advocate.