Leaving the EU: Implementation

Stephen Kinnock Excerpts

Monday 29th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Walker]

My right hon. Friend speaks with great expertise on these matters. It will be in the interests of the UK and the EU to reach agreement on the exact period of this implementation period as soon as possible, but it is important that we enter this negotiation by trying to give ourselves sufficient flexibility to achieve success.

[Stephen Kinnock (Aberavon) (Lab)]

Paragraph 17 of the directives for the negotiating team states clearly that

“any time-limited prolongation of the Union acquis requires existing Union regulatory, budgetary, supervisory, judiciary and enforcement instruments and structures to apply, including the competence of the Court of Justice of the European Union.”

Will the Minister please explain what exactly will be implemented during the implementation period?

[Mr Walker]

Very clearly, as the Prime Minister set out, the aim of the implementation period is to implement the future relationship between the UK and the EU and to allow us to put those structures in place for that future relationship. As the hon. Gentleman so often does, he speaks eloquently in this House on behalf of the EU, but we need to make sure that we are negotiating on behalf of the UK.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Walker]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right on both points. We want to make a success of this process for the UK economy, UK business and every part of the UK. I think that our constituents expect us to work together across the House and not to be calling each other names during this process.

[Stephen Kinnock]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

[Mr Speaker]

I will take this point of order now because I understand that it relates to the exchanges that have just taken place. Let’s hear it.

[Stephen Kinnock]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. As you will have heard during this session, I asked the Minister a perfectly reasonable question. Unfortunately, he chose to respond by impugning my motives and questioning my patriotism. I assure him that I speak only in what I see as the national interest and the interests of my constituents. I therefore ask him to retract those comments and apologise, and we will leave it at that.

[Mr Speaker]

I said that I would hear the hon. Gentleman. The Minister is not under any obligation to respond, although he may if he wants to.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Walker]

I did not mean to impugn the hon. Gentleman’s motives. I would only point out that he was reading directly from the EU’s negotiating guidelines and that today we are, of course, discussing the UK’s policy.

[Stephen Kinnock]

That is not an apology.

[Mr Speaker]

No, it is not an apology. It is an explanation. But we will leave it there.