‘No way to no deal on Brexit’ - city MP - The Worcester Observer

‘No way to no deal on Brexit’ - city MP

Worcester Editorial 28th Nov, 2018   0

WORCESTER MP Robin Walker has revealed he would not support a ‘no deal’ Brexit in the event of Prime Minister Theresa May failing to secure Parliamentary support for her deal to take the UK out of the European Union.

The city MP and Brexit Minister said the ‘disruption and uncertainty’ of no deal was not something he could support and said the outcome wasn’t in the best interest of local jobs, investment and growth.

Mrs May faces an uphill battle to win support for her deal which was agreed in Brussels on Sunday by European leaders with as many as 90 Tory MPs thought to be set to oppose her plan. Labour is also expected to vote against the bill when it is debated in the House of Commons on December 11.

Should the Prime Minister’s deal fail to win approval it could lead to Britain leaving the European Union without a deal but in an impassioned plea to city voters and his Conservative colleagues, Mr Walker said MPs should vote for what is best for their constituency and the country.




“I am very clear it is better for Worcester and for the UK to achieve this deal. I have worked on it with determination over the last two and a half years and I will continue to work to deliver it in the months ahead,” he said.

“I have always believed this country can succeed either inside or outside the EU and I believe that we now need to take the responsible course and prove that to be the case.


“This means achieving the best deal that can be done for our citizens, our businesses and our economy, and getting that deal done before we leave the EU next year,” he added.

The MP, who voted to remain in the referendum, claimed during the 2016 campaign ‘the risks of leaving are much greater than those of staying in’.

However in setting out his reasons for leaving, the MP said he’d worked to ‘end the country’s political participation in what had become a political project’.

“I have always sought to reconcile the result of the referendum and the decision of Worcester voters with the interests of our local economy, with the national interest in striking a good deal with our neighbours and with the UK’s position as a highly respected country which does things properly.”

Mr Walker admitted the Prime Minister’s deal was never going to ‘satisfy everyone’ but said to ignore the wishes of more than 17million people nationally or 29,000 in Worcester and stay in the EU after Parliament and the Government had promised the British people the final say, would be a ‘betrayal of democracy’.

“People who want us to cut all ties with our neighbours will not be satisfied with the compromises made to protect trade and investment between us, whilst others who wish we were not leaving the EU at all will never be satisfied with anything short of full membership.

“However, I believe the vast majority of people, including the majority of serious business people, do want to see something between these extremes.”

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