New Partnership with the EU

Wes Streeting Excerpts

Tuesday 17th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davis]

This is very unusual for the hon. and learned Lady, but she has not quite got Michel Barnier’s statement right. What he is reported to have said, although I think he subsequently denied it, is that he saw that there would be risks to the financial stability of the European Union if it did not maintain open access for the City of London. The hon. and learned Lady was also wrong in saying that we had talked about special deals for any sector. We have not. [Interruption.] The aim of the British Government is to ensure that the whole economy succeeds as a result of this policy, not just one part of it; and that includes Scotland.

[Wes Streeting (Ilford North) (Lab)]

The Secretary of State says that no deal is better than a bad deal, but what he has not made clear is that no deal is a bad deal. Given that the Chancellor told the Treasury Committee that the Prime Minister should enter the negotiations with the widest possible range of options available, why have the Government today chosen to rule out the best possible deal with the European Union, which is membership of the single market, membership of the customs union, and, as a result, free-flowing goods and trade with the largest single market in the world on our own doorstep and access for British businesses to half a billion customers?

[Mr Davis]

I do not know where the hon. Gentleman was on 23 June, but the British people pretty much rejected that.

Article 50

Wes Streeting Excerpts

Monday 7th November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davis]

I entirely agree with my hon. Friend, but that must be subject to one thing: a Government who operate under the law. That is what we are going to do.

[Wes Streeting (Ilford North) (Lab)]

A majority of voters and a majority of constituencies voted to leave the European Union, so of course Parliament will trigger article 50, but does the Secretary of State understand the difference between revealing his hand in negotiation and telling us what his opening position would be? In the past week we have seen the resignation of a Conservative MP because of the way in which the Government are handling their position and the Chairman of the Treasury Committee urging the Secretary of State to come clean about issues such as the customs union. If the Secretary of State did read the Financial Times, perhaps he would understand that his dithering and delay, and the lack of clear direction, are costing jobs and inward investment, and affecting the pound in people’s pockets today.

[Mr Davis]

It is because I read rather more than the Financial Times that I know that most of that is not true.

Oral Answers to Questions

Wes Streeting Excerpts

Thursday 20th October 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jones]

As I have indicated, immigration is a reserved matter, but as I have also indicated, we will continue to have discussions with all the devolved Administrations, including the Scottish Government, and there will in due course, as the matter develops, be discussions about where powers should lie.

[Wes Streeting (Ilford North) (Lab)]

7. What discussions he has had with the Mayor of London on protecting London's interests during negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Mr Robin Walker)]

London is a great global city and we expect it to continue to be so. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will join me in welcoming the record-breaking jobs figures for London that were published yesterday—I think they show the lowest rate of unemployment in London in our lifetime. The Secretary of State has already met the Mayor of London and we expect to hold meetings with regions across the UK to ensure that their views are taken into account.

[Wes Streeting]

I am sure the Minister welcomes the LondonIsOpen campaign led by the Mayor of London, so will he give a commitment today that he will look with an open mind at the case being developed by London’s business community for a work permit system for London that would enable us to continue to recruit the best and the brightest talent from around the world?

[Mr Walker]

The precise way in which the Government will control the movement to the UK of EU nationals and people from around the world is something that we will be working on with the Home Office. We will certainly take into account representations from London and other devolved areas, but we clearly need to come up with a policy that works for the whole of the UK.

Next Steps in Leaving the European Union

Wes Streeting Excerpts

Monday 10th October 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davis]

That is a very good and difficult question. The simple truth is that we have to make a judgment, as is the case with all borders of that nature. Norway and Sweden have a good example of an open border, as do Canada and America. There are small-scale movements, but big-scale movements can be found and dealt with.

[Wes Streeting (Ilford North) (Lab)]

Writing in The Daily Telegraph following the referendum, the Foreign Secretary claimed that we would still have access to the single market and that the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, and those of UK citizens living abroad, would be respected. If that is no longer the case and the Foreign Secretary was confused, will the Secretary of State clear up these issues in the pre-negotiation White Paper that he promised? Can he tell us when that will be published? If, as the hon. Member for Harwich and North Essex (Mr Jenkin) suggests, the Vote Leave prospectus is to be the basis of the Brexit negotiations, will he tell us when we will be getting £350 million a week for the NHS?

[Mr Davis]

The simple answer is that we will seek to get the most open, barrier-free market that we can. That will be as good as a single market.