This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/sep/30/anna-soubry-brands-liam-foxs-free-trade-speech-delusional
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Anna Soubry brands Liam Fox's free trade speech 'delusional' | Anna Soubry brands Liam Fox's free trade speech 'delusional' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A senior Conservative has voiced concerns about the responsibility for Brexit given to Liam Fox, Boris Johnson and David Davis, saying it was “really worrying these are the senior people who have the future of our country in their hands”. | A senior Conservative has voiced concerns about the responsibility for Brexit given to Liam Fox, Boris Johnson and David Davis, saying it was “really worrying these are the senior people who have the future of our country in their hands”. |
| In the run-up to the Conservative party conference in Birmingham this weekend, Anna Soubry reserved particular criticism for Fox, branding his speech on free trade in Manchester on Thursday “delusional”. | In the run-up to the Conservative party conference in Birmingham this weekend, Anna Soubry reserved particular criticism for Fox, branding his speech on free trade in Manchester on Thursday “delusional”. |
| The former business minister, who sat in cabinet until July, said Theresa May was a voice of sanity following the referendum, but that the prime minister needed to explain even in “broad terms” what she wanted out of Brexit, as three months later we are “no further forward, and it’s her job to lead us”. | |
| “Liam Fox’s speech this week was very worrying. In fact, it was delusional,” she told the Guardian. “How can we have ‘freer’ free trade? Let’s get real, for God’s sake. It’s really worrying that these are the senior people who have the future of our country in their hands. May is the voice of sanity, and without her I don’t know where the three Brexiteers would take us.” | “Liam Fox’s speech this week was very worrying. In fact, it was delusional,” she told the Guardian. “How can we have ‘freer’ free trade? Let’s get real, for God’s sake. It’s really worrying that these are the senior people who have the future of our country in their hands. May is the voice of sanity, and without her I don’t know where the three Brexiteers would take us.” |
| The Conservative party conference opens on Sunday and is under pressure from business and European leaders to clarify the UK’s position. It is possible that May could use her opening speech to name the month she will trigger article 50, which will trigger the two-year countdown to the UK’s exit from the EU. | The Conservative party conference opens on Sunday and is under pressure from business and European leaders to clarify the UK’s position. It is possible that May could use her opening speech to name the month she will trigger article 50, which will trigger the two-year countdown to the UK’s exit from the EU. |
| Senior EU figures have been told in private the prime minister wants to trigger the formal start of talks early in the new year, but so far she has refused to confirm this in public. | Senior EU figures have been told in private the prime minister wants to trigger the formal start of talks early in the new year, but so far she has refused to confirm this in public. |
| The pressure not to name a date is intense due to the government’s acknowledgement that the UK’s negotiating position would have to be outlined in the formal letter issued to trigger article 50. By naming the date she plans to send a letter to Brussels, the prime minister would set herself on an irreversible course before the cabinet has agreed its negotiating objectives. | The pressure not to name a date is intense due to the government’s acknowledgement that the UK’s negotiating position would have to be outlined in the formal letter issued to trigger article 50. By naming the date she plans to send a letter to Brussels, the prime minister would set herself on an irreversible course before the cabinet has agreed its negotiating objectives. |
| There is worry among pro-remain Conservatives that May’s relative silence on the details of Brexit is giving too much airtime to Fox, the trade secretary and arch-eurosceptic. Fox has hinted he favours a “hard Brexit” that would see the UK give up the benefits of the single market but allow it to limit immigration from the EU. | There is worry among pro-remain Conservatives that May’s relative silence on the details of Brexit is giving too much airtime to Fox, the trade secretary and arch-eurosceptic. Fox has hinted he favours a “hard Brexit” that would see the UK give up the benefits of the single market but allow it to limit immigration from the EU. |
| It is understood that Conservatives from the pro-remain wing of the party are planning to put pressure on the government over Brexit during the four-day conference by calling for a more concrete plans, especially to allay business worries. | |
| One senior Tory MP said: “I think the PM will find that ‘Brexit means Brexit’ is quickly losing its value, and needs to be replaced by some more concrete details – fast. It is beginning to look vacuous and like she is playing for time.” | One senior Tory MP said: “I think the PM will find that ‘Brexit means Brexit’ is quickly losing its value, and needs to be replaced by some more concrete details – fast. It is beginning to look vacuous and like she is playing for time.” |
| Fox’s grasp of trade law also came under attack from Sir David Edward, a former judge in the European court of justice who is advising the Scottish government on Brexit. Edward challenged Fox’s claim that the UK would keep the EU’s existing tariff schedule when it leaves the bloc. | Fox’s grasp of trade law also came under attack from Sir David Edward, a former judge in the European court of justice who is advising the Scottish government on Brexit. Edward challenged Fox’s claim that the UK would keep the EU’s existing tariff schedule when it leaves the bloc. |
| “Nobody who understands trade law could have possibly have said what he said,” he told an MLex Competition conference. | “Nobody who understands trade law could have possibly have said what he said,” he told an MLex Competition conference. |
| “An as an economist has said, there is no such thing in today’s world as free trade or a free trade agreement, there is only managed trade or participation in a regulated market, and that is quite important. The notion that we can get back to some kind of Victorian liberal notion of totally free trade I think is totally misleading.” | “An as an economist has said, there is no such thing in today’s world as free trade or a free trade agreement, there is only managed trade or participation in a regulated market, and that is quite important. The notion that we can get back to some kind of Victorian liberal notion of totally free trade I think is totally misleading.” |
| Eurosceptics including Iain Duncan Smith and pro-Europeans such as Nicky Morgan have urged May to provide clarity on the start of negotiations, while European leaders ranging from the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, to the Italian prime minister, Matteo Renzi, have drawn a blank in private discussions with her on the shape of her UK exit plans. | Eurosceptics including Iain Duncan Smith and pro-Europeans such as Nicky Morgan have urged May to provide clarity on the start of negotiations, while European leaders ranging from the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, to the Italian prime minister, Matteo Renzi, have drawn a blank in private discussions with her on the shape of her UK exit plans. |
| Most are content with article 50 being triggered in early 2017, as this gives time for the UK to leave before the next round of elections to the European parliament in 2019. | Most are content with article 50 being triggered in early 2017, as this gives time for the UK to leave before the next round of elections to the European parliament in 2019. |
| The key trade-off remains whether access to the single market will include free movement for European migrant workers, some form of judicial oversight from EU courts, and contributions – voluntary or otherwise – to Brussels’ budget. | The key trade-off remains whether access to the single market will include free movement for European migrant workers, some form of judicial oversight from EU courts, and contributions – voluntary or otherwise – to Brussels’ budget. |
| As ministers continue to insist they will not give a “running commentary” on Brexit, Sajid Javid, the communities secretary, hinted that the government could be considering a work permit system for different sectors in an interview with the FT. | |
| He said he could not predict “what the future might look like in terms of work visas and foreign workers”, but added that the construction sector would not facea skills shortage because of the exclusion of builders from EU countries. | |
| “Wherever we end up, the government is determined to get a good deal for Britain,” he said. “Whether it’s construction or any other sector, we don’t want to make it any more difficult for those industries than it is.” |