Leaving the EU: Sectoral Impact Assessments

Seema Malhotra Excerpts

Tuesday 28th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Walker]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his suggestion. Of course such suggestions are not necessarily for me to respond to, but it is certainly something that we will have a look at.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

In June, the Secretary of State said on “The Andrew Marr Show” that

“We’ve got 50, nearly 60 sector analyses already done.”

In September, that was reiterated in response to my freedom of information request. In October, the Secretary of State confirmed that to our Committee and said that the reports were in “excruciating detail” and that the Prime Minister had seen the summaries. In November, we heard that they never existed. On what basis can completed reports be uncompleted, and on what basis is it right that the Government do anything other than give the reports in full to the Select Committee, in line with the resolution of this House?

[Mr Walker]

The Government have provided the reports covering the 58 sectors to the Select Committee, and I look forward to the Select Committee being able to scrutinise them in detail. The hon. Lady has been persistent in pressing for as much of this information as possible to be put in the public domain. Her Front-Bench team have also been persistent in recognising that that could not be done with all the information, subject to negotiations, without damaging our national interest.