Calls for Red Arrows to fly over Parliament on the day Britain leaves the EU are blocked by Remainer minister over fears of upsetting pro-EU voters
- Tory MP Tobias Ellwood rejected the notion of celebrating the historic event
- He said, ‘Although 17 million people may be shouting for joy’ not all would be
- Ellwood told fellow Tory Nigel Evans 43 million voters needed to come together
Calls for the Red Arrows, above, to fly over Parliament on EU exit day have been blocked by a Remainer Minister over fears of upsetting pro-EU voters.
Tory MP Nigel Evans has appealed to the Ministry of Defence for a flypast to ‘properly celebrate that important historic event’.
But Tobias Ellwood rejected the plea, saying it would be too divisive.
The Red Arrows training above RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire on a clear day last month
He told Mr Evans: ‘Although 17 million people may be shouting for joy on that day and may demand that the Red Arrows participate, the nation as a whole – 43 million voters – must come together, put aside their polarised views and the gridlock we have faced and move forward.’
Mr Ellwood also raised eyebrows in the House of Commons by adding: ‘We were on different sides of the argument.
‘To be clear, where we are is not where I would want to be.’
But he insisted he would continue supporting Britain’s EU exit ‘if there is a deal’ as he was ‘committed to democracy’.