This week Parliament sits again following the Christmas
Recess.
It has been good to be able to be home in Cornwall over
Christmas and New Year, not only to be able to have time with family and
friends but also to be out and about in the constituency and attend a number of
local events.
Thank you to everyone who has been in touch with me recently
or has come to speak to me either at my local advice surgeries or when you have
seen me around. I am always so grateful
for the welcome Anne and I receive and the kind words of encouragement we so
often hear from local people. It is always important to me to hear from you,
the people who elected me, so that I am able to effectively represent you in
Parliament.
Next Tuesday sees the ‘meaningful vote’ in Parliament on the
EU Withdrawal Agreement, ahead of our leaving the EU on 29 March.
After having considered the Deal when it was first presented
to Parliament in November I was clear that as it stood, I could not support it.
This was primarily due to the ‘backstop’ in the deal, which could
leave our country without a set date to cut all ties with the EU, at the mercy
of unelected bureaucrats in Brussels to determine when we could finally leave.
This would also undermine our negotiating position in agreeing a future deal
and I believe would particularly leave our fishing industry in a vulnerable
position. As such, the deal would leave us in a no-man’s land of being neither
in nor fully out, as well as keeping us indefinitely in the customs union which
goes against our 2017 manifesto commitment.
In the weeks since the Deal was first announced, the EU has
given no sign it will be altering its position. Whilst the Prime Minister has
been seeking reassurances from the EU, these do not change the fundamental
flaws in the agreement. Therefore, as it stands I can confirm that when the
Deal comes to the vote in Parliament next week I will not be supporting it.
As the Prime Minister has said many times previously No Deal
is better than a bad deal and is still an option. I am pleased to see that the
Government is now making the public aware of the preparations that have been
put in place for such an outcome should it be necessary. Indeed, should
Parliament not be able to agree on a Deal, then No Deal is the default legal position.
A great deal of work has already taken place to prepare for a no deal Brexit
and it wrong to present this as some sort of cliff edge we are not prepared
for.
Whilst leaving without an agreement is not the preferred
outcome, it is not something we as a country should be afraid of. However, I
believe that in the run up to March we will see an escalation of
scare-mongering for what Brexit and a no-deal Brexit will mean from those who
wish to overturn the democratic decision our country made in 2016.
It is important to note that these doom-mongers have been
proved to be wrong time and time again. Whether that be those predicting an
immediate economic crash should we vote to leave in 2016, or the more recent
claims that our drinking water and medicinal supplies are at risk with a no
deal outcome (something which the NHS has specifically denied), these people
have been proved wrong again and again. I hope people will see these attempts
for what they are. Whilst there will of course be challenges should we leave without
an agreement in place, we also need to be positive that we are well placed to
cope, and the more preparations that are put in place then the smoother our
exit will be.
My hope remains that if the Withdrawal Agreement is voted
down next week, that the Prime Minister will then return to the EU and get a
better deal that delivers on the referendum result and does not tie us
indefinitely to the EU. If she can secure this then I will be pleased to
support it. However if the EU continue to be unwilling to change their position
then we should make clear to the EU leaders that we will be leaving and if that
means leaving without a deal then so be it.
I remain committed to delivering of the result of the
referendum and doing all I can to ensure we leave the EU in March in the most
positive way possible.
