Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to The Benefits of Brexit: How the UK is taking advantage of leaving the EU published in January 2022, what assessment he has made of the way in which the Withdrawal Agreement enabled the UK to establish a strategic partnership with Australia and the USA through AUKAS.

Following our withdrawal from the European Union, the UK is able to pursue an independent foreign, trade and security policy. As set out in ‘The Benefits of Brexit’, this gives us greater flexibility to pursue the UK’s international objectives: to sit at the heart of a network of like-minded countries, defend human rights and uphold global norms. This new and agile approach is demonstrated through AUKUS. AUKUS is a concrete articulation of the UK’s ambition, made in the ‘Integrated Review’, to deepen defence, security and foreign policy ties with like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific and more widely across the globe. The agreement reflects the unique level of trust and cooperation between our three countries.