FLEXI BREXI
Theresa May calls for compromises over Brexit in bid to win a good trade deal in landmark Brexit speech
The PM said the two sides were 'making real progress' on talks but warned the EU must compromise on its demands
THERESA May has called on Leavers and Remainers to suck up some “hard facts” and makes compromises to let her win a good EU trade deal.
The PM’s tough message came as she finally unveiled a ‘pick n’mix’ blueprint for how she wants Britain’s new economic relationship with Europe to work.
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In a landmark speech to also try to unify the divided country, she insisted she would take a pragmatic approach to upcoming negotiations that everyone should now unite under.
Mrs May told an audience of business bosses at Mansion House: “I want to be straight with people – because the reality is that we all need to face up to some hard facts”.
And sending the same powerful compromise message to EU leaders, she added: “We both need to face the fact that this is a negotiation and neither of us can have exactly what we want”.
Brexiteers would have to swallow some bitter pills, Mrs May insisted.
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To ensure businesses still get as much market access as possible, the UK will agree not to undercut the EU by signing “binding commitments” to stick to its founding principles of fair competition, she declared.
Britain will still be affected by some euro judges’ decisions, and still want to sign up to the EU’s safety agencies to regulate products such as medicines and chemicals.
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But in exchange, the PM also insisted that Remainers will have to accept Brexit’s key prize – that Britain must remain free to strike trade deals with the rest of the world.
That means the UK will no longer be bound by any specific Brussels rules, but instead agree with the EU to recognise each other’s own systems of high standards.
What the PM said - and what she meant
We take a look at Theresa May’s big Brexit speech and decipher what she actually meant by it:
What she said: “The fact is that every Free Trade Agreement has varying market access depending on the respective interests of the countries involved.
“If this is cherry-picking, then every trade arrangement is cherry-picking.”
What she meant: “Listen Angela Merkel, it is perfectly appropriate to come up with a unique Brexit deal different to any of the current models in place.”
What she said: [on Northern Ireland] “We chose to leave; we have a responsibility to help find a solution.
“But we can’t do it on our own. It is for all of us to work together.”
What she meant: “We are not going to create a hard border in Ireland and the EU must not push the Republic to create one in order to punish Britain for leaving the customs union.”
What she said: “We both need to face the fact that this is a negotiation and neither of us can have exactly what we want.”
What she meant: “Dear Brexiteers – not everything you want from Brexit is going to be possible, and to the EU – I am not going to give in to your demands either, my red lines will not be broken.”
What she said: “We must also build a new and lasting relationship while, given the uncertainty inherent in this negotiation, preparing for every scenario.”
What she meant: “When I said ‘no deal is better than a bad deal’ I really meant it, and despite my warm words today; I still mean it no.”
What she said: “We also want as frictionless a border as possible between us and the EU - so that we don’t damage the integrated supply chains our industries depend on and don’t have a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.”
What she meant: “I want the softest possible ‘hard Brexit’ – by leaving the single market and the customs union, but still having the closest possible alignment on regulation.”
Under Mrs May’s trading plan, goods and services will be treated differently.
Parliament will voluntarily agree to stick closely to many Brussels regulations in key job-providing industries like car factories.
But service sectors like finance will be freed up to diverge further away from the EU’s grip.
Farmers will also get greater flexibility on food standards to allow them to sell more to the rest of the world, and fishermen’s quotas will also be bigger, while the UK will still allow some EU boats access too our seas.
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EU boss Donald Tusk mocks Theresa May's 'so-called red lines' on Brexit in No10 meeting
The PM also hit back hard at Brussels criticism that her pick n’mix plan for the different areas of the economy was “cherry picking”.
It is just “pragmatic common sense”, she insisted, arguing: “Every Free Trade Agreement has varying market access depending on the respective interests of the countries involved.
“If this is cherry-picking, then every trade arrangement is cherry-picking.”
In her landmark speech - the PM's third major intervention on Brexit - Mrs May said:
- Trade between Britain and the EU WILL face new barriers, but the two sides should make them as small as possible
- The Northern Ireland question can be solved by allowing most goods to pass freely without checks
- The Brexit trade deal will be unprecedented - despite EU complaints about "cherry picking"
- Britain will continue to follow the rulings of European judges but they will have no formal say over the UK
- She will seek a deal which allows Brits to travel freely to Europe and vice versa
- The UK won't seek to reduce protections for workers and the natural world once we are out of the EU
Mrs May also proposed a raft of mechanisms and safeguards to protect both the EU and UK’s interests under the new relationship, as well as an independent panel to adjudicate during disputes.
Mrs May offered no immediate solution to the heated row over how to avoid any hard border in Ireland.
But in another bid to calm tensions with EU negotiators, she insisted she will find one with their help, pledging: “We chose to leave; we have a responsibility to help find a solution”.
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And she ended the speech with a passionate plea to Brussels to get down to business as soon as possible when formal negotiations for a trade deal start in just three weeks time.
The PM insisted: “We know what we want. We understand your principles.
“We have a shared interest in getting this right. So let’s get on with it.”
As the first major salvo in the all-important negotiation starting next month, the speech was billed as one of the most important of Mrs May’s premiership.
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EU leaders have begged her for months for more details on her plan for frictionless access to the single market.
A senior No10 source said: “The speech told you quite a bit about the PM’s character.
“She is a pragmatic person, who doesn’t believe in theology”.
No10 were delighted that the PM’s wide-ranging new offer left most Tory Brexiteers and Remainers content for now.
Five pillars of Brexit
- UK commitment to stick to EU's fair competition principle. The PM should get this, as UK led the way in EU competition policy and we share the same strong belief in free markets.
- Independent arbitration mechanism to settle disputes. Probably do-able, as such bodies are common in trade deals and essential to protect both sides from unfair practices.
- Ongoing dialogue to maintain trust. Unknown if PM will achieve this as it’s a new concept and it is not known what form this ongoing dialogue will take.
- Data protection agreement to keep data flowing freely. Hard to achieve as EU is obsessed with privacy and may not accept oversight of its citizens’ data without European Court of Justice.
- Brits and EU citizens to work and study in each other's countries. Visa scheme for skilled migrants could be option but the EU’s commitment to free movement makes bespoke deal hard.
Business bosses the CBI also dubbed it a “welcome softening of red lines” that “will make a good deal more achievable”.
Leading Brexiteer Iain Duncan-Smith told The Sun he was “broadly happy”, but the former Tory leader also insisted: “We must retain the right to change anything in the treaty if we want to in the future.
Our parliament must remain sovereign.”
Leading Tory Remainer and former Cabinet minister Nicky Morgan praised the PM’s “very welcome tone of realism and compromise”.
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Having struck a hard line earlier in the week, the EU’s chief negotiator gave the PM’s speech a cautious welcome.
Michel Barnier added in a tweet: “Clarity about UK leaving Single Market and Customs Union & recognition of trade-offs will inform EU Council guidelines re future FTA”.
We have a shared interest in getting this right. So let's get on with it.
Theresa May
But other European politicians were critical.
Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he is still concerned, and “more detailed and realistic proposals” are needed.
Leading German centre right MEP Manfred Weber accused the British government of “burying its head in the sand”, adding: “After what I have heard today, I am even more concerned”.
And another EU diplomat added: “She said no hard border, no Canada, no Norway, no ECJ, which leaves us with what?
Theresa May's 7 hard facts to face up to
- Britain is leaving the single market and this means we will have less access to Europe’s markets and vice versa.
- European Union law will continue to affect Britain, even after we have left the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.
- UK must enter into binding vows to stick to some EU rules, like limiting state intervention in markets to ensure fair competition.
- Britain will have to stay closely aligned with European Union rules covering the environment and workers’ rights.
- UK needs freedom to strike new trade deals but keep as frictionless a border as possible with EU and avoid hard border in Ireland.
- The EU must accept that a post-Brexit EU-UK trade deal will be a bespoke deal that goes further than any other deal negotiated with third countries.
- Both sides have to accept that they are not going to get exactly what they want from these Brexit negotiations.
Pro-EU British politicians also attacked Mrs May for still ducking a host of big decisions.
Lib Dem leader Sir Vince Cable said: “Theresa May has once again prevaricated from making serious decisions about our future”.
Aware of the speech’s huge significance, the PM was still making last minute changes in her No10 study within an hour of delivering it.
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The PM was watched in the audience by Chancellor Philip Hammond, Brexit Secretary David Davis and Business Secretary Greg Clark.
She originally wanted to deliver the speech in Newcastle, in a symbolic nod towards the need for national unity.
The North East city’s In/Out vote during the landmark EU referendum was split right down the middle, 50/50.
But Britain’s torrential snow deluge forced her to stay in London instead.
Theresa May's 'Five Brexit Tests'
THE Prime Minister has revealed what will guide Britain's approach to the continuing negotiations:
- The agreement must respect the outcome of the referendum vote to "take control of our borders, laws and money"
- The agreement must endure, without the need to return to the negotiating table "because things have broken down"
- It must protect jobs and security, with Britain and the EU continuing to pursue the "shared goals" of growing their economies while keeping their people safe
- It must be consistent with Britain remaining "a modern, open, outward-looking, tolerant, European democracy" that stands by its international obligations
- It must strengthen "our union of nations and our union of people"
Meanwhile, Labour would pay to continue accessing the single market and customs union, the party admitted.
Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC: “Any payments would have to be negotiated, any sensible negotiator would keep payments to a minimum.”
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