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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jun/26/yvette-cooper-or-hilary-benn-should-lead-unity-government-to-halt-brexit-ed-davey
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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Yvette Cooper or Hilary Benn should lead unity government to halt Brexit – Ed Davey | Yvette Cooper or Hilary Benn should lead unity government to halt Brexit – Ed Davey |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| The Liberal Democrat leadership candidate Ed Davey has suggested his party could back Yvette Cooper or Hilary Benn as head of a government of national unity, to be installed instead of a general election if the government lost a no-confidence vote. | The Liberal Democrat leadership candidate Ed Davey has suggested his party could back Yvette Cooper or Hilary Benn as head of a government of national unity, to be installed instead of a general election if the government lost a no-confidence vote. |
| The Lib Dem contender admitted he had not spoken to Cooper or Benn about the plan and said the unity government’s sole purpose would be to oversee a second referendum and then dissolve parliament and hold a general election. | |
| Only a national government can deliver Britain from its Brexit nightmare | Ed Davey | Only a national government can deliver Britain from its Brexit nightmare | Ed Davey |
| Davey said the plan would “take some persuasion” but could be a way to attract Conservatives to vote down their own government if they were wary of their actions leading to Jeremy Corbyn winning an election. | Davey said the plan would “take some persuasion” but could be a way to attract Conservatives to vote down their own government if they were wary of their actions leading to Jeremy Corbyn winning an election. |
| Cooper, who has been at the forefront of cross-party efforts to stop a no-deal Brexit, has never endorsed a second referendum. | Cooper, who has been at the forefront of cross-party efforts to stop a no-deal Brexit, has never endorsed a second referendum. |
| In a ‘no deal’ scenario, the UK would leave the single market and the customs union immediately with no ‘divorce’ arrangement in place. The European Court of Justice would cease to have jurisdiction over the UK, and the country would also leave various other institutions including Euratom and Europol. | In a ‘no deal’ scenario, the UK would leave the single market and the customs union immediately with no ‘divorce’ arrangement in place. The European Court of Justice would cease to have jurisdiction over the UK, and the country would also leave various other institutions including Euratom and Europol. |
| The UK would no longer be paying into the EU budget, nor would it hand over the £39bn divorce payment. There would be no transition period. Free movement of people into the UK from the EU27 would stop. | The UK would no longer be paying into the EU budget, nor would it hand over the £39bn divorce payment. There would be no transition period. Free movement of people into the UK from the EU27 would stop. |
| Trade between the UK and the EU would be governed by basic WTO rules. The UK government has already indicated that it will set low or no tariffs on goods coming into the country. This would lower the price of imports - making it harder for British manufacturers to compete with foreign goods. If the UK sets the tariffs to zero on goods coming in from the EU, under WTO ‘most favoured nation’ rules it must also offer the same zero tariffs to other countries. | Trade between the UK and the EU would be governed by basic WTO rules. The UK government has already indicated that it will set low or no tariffs on goods coming into the country. This would lower the price of imports - making it harder for British manufacturers to compete with foreign goods. If the UK sets the tariffs to zero on goods coming in from the EU, under WTO ‘most favoured nation’ rules it must also offer the same zero tariffs to other countries. |
| WTO rules only cover goods - they do not apply to financial services, a significant part of the UK’s economy. Trading under WTO rules will also require border checks, which could cause delays at ports, and a severe challenge to the peace process in Ireland without alternative arrangements in place to avoid a hard border. | WTO rules only cover goods - they do not apply to financial services, a significant part of the UK’s economy. Trading under WTO rules will also require border checks, which could cause delays at ports, and a severe challenge to the peace process in Ireland without alternative arrangements in place to avoid a hard border. |
| Some ‘No Deal’ supporters have claimed that the UK can use Article 24 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (Gatt) to force the EU to accept a period of up to ten years where there are no tariffs while a free trade agreement (FTA) is negotiated. However, the UK cannot invoke Article 24 unilaterally - the EU would have to agree to it. In previous cases where the article has been used, the two sides had a deal in place, and it has never been used to replicate something of the scale and complexity of the EU and the UK’s trading relationship. | Some ‘No Deal’ supporters have claimed that the UK can use Article 24 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (Gatt) to force the EU to accept a period of up to ten years where there are no tariffs while a free trade agreement (FTA) is negotiated. However, the UK cannot invoke Article 24 unilaterally - the EU would have to agree to it. In previous cases where the article has been used, the two sides had a deal in place, and it has never been used to replicate something of the scale and complexity of the EU and the UK’s trading relationship. |
| Until some agreements are in place, a ‘no deal’ scenario will place extra overheads on UK businesses - for example the current government advice is that all drivers, including lorries and commercial vehicles, will require extra documentation to be able to drive in Europe after 31 October if there is no deal. Those arguing for a ‘managed’ no deal envisage that a range of smaller sector-by-sector bilateral agreements could be quickly put into place as mutual self-interest between the UK and EU to avoid introducing or rapidly remove this kind of bureaucracy. | Until some agreements are in place, a ‘no deal’ scenario will place extra overheads on UK businesses - for example the current government advice is that all drivers, including lorries and commercial vehicles, will require extra documentation to be able to drive in Europe after 31 October if there is no deal. Those arguing for a ‘managed’ no deal envisage that a range of smaller sector-by-sector bilateral agreements could be quickly put into place as mutual self-interest between the UK and EU to avoid introducing or rapidly remove this kind of bureaucracy. |
| Martin Belam | Martin Belam |
| Speaking to journalists at a hustings with his Lib Dem leadership rival Jo Swinson, Davey said it was an “extreme option” and said he had not done the numbers. | Speaking to journalists at a hustings with his Lib Dem leadership rival Jo Swinson, Davey said it was an “extreme option” and said he had not done the numbers. |
| “I think it has to be a Labour MP because most MPs supporting the Queen’s speech in this government of national unity would be Labour. Ultimately, it’s a challenge to my Labour colleagues,” he said. | “I think it has to be a Labour MP because most MPs supporting the Queen’s speech in this government of national unity would be Labour. Ultimately, it’s a challenge to my Labour colleagues,” he said. |
| “I’ve not held talks, I’ve not done a tally. The last time we held an indicative vote for a people’s vote we had 280 people voting for that. I’m as confident as I can be there are six cabinet ministers who would have voted for that, as well as junior ministers. We would need some Tories to come over … I think they are there.” | “I’ve not held talks, I’ve not done a tally. The last time we held an indicative vote for a people’s vote we had 280 people voting for that. I’m as confident as I can be there are six cabinet ministers who would have voted for that, as well as junior ministers. We would need some Tories to come over … I think they are there.” |
| During the hustings, both Swinson and Davey said they were confident about the possibility of new MPs joining the party, after Chuka Umunna joined the Lib Dems. | During the hustings, both Swinson and Davey said they were confident about the possibility of new MPs joining the party, after Chuka Umunna joined the Lib Dems. |
| “I have and will continue to have private conversations,” Swinson said. “I’m keen to grow the Liberal Democrat parliamentary party in a variety of ways.” | “I have and will continue to have private conversations,” Swinson said. “I’m keen to grow the Liberal Democrat parliamentary party in a variety of ways.” |
| Davey named Heidi Allen, the former Tory MP who briefly joined and then left Change UK, as one MP he had been in talks with. | Davey named Heidi Allen, the former Tory MP who briefly joined and then left Change UK, as one MP he had been in talks with. |
| “I have talked to Heidi, I am very happy for them to join, and having listened to them and heard their positions on Europe and other issues, they would fit well in our party,” he said of Allen and of her former Change UK and Tory colleague Sarah Wollaston. | “I have talked to Heidi, I am very happy for them to join, and having listened to them and heard their positions on Europe and other issues, they would fit well in our party,” he said of Allen and of her former Change UK and Tory colleague Sarah Wollaston. |
| “We have to show we are a successful party really going places, they can afford to join us and hold their seats, then we can see quite a lot of people going our way.” | “We have to show we are a successful party really going places, they can afford to join us and hold their seats, then we can see quite a lot of people going our way.” |
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