David Davis today lashed out at Brussels smears about the impact of Brexit as he warned the EU against putting up ‘barriers’ to trade.
The Brexit Secretary ridiculed the idea that the UK would turn into a cancer-ridden Mad Max-style dystopia after quitting the bloc – instead vowing that ministers will use the opportunity to raise standards.
Delivering a speech to business leaders in Vienna, Mr Davis urged ‘mutual recognition’ of regulations on both sides of the Channel, saying it is in no-one’s interests to harm the flow of goods and services.
Delivering a speech to business leaders in Vienna, David Davis urged ‘mutual recognition’ of regulations on both sides of the Channel, saying it is in no-one’s interests to harm the flow of goods and services
The Prime Minister (pictured giving a speech in the Midlands yesterday) is due to gather senior ministers at her country residence to discuss the ‘end state’ of relations with the EU
The address in Austria is the latest phase in a series of interventions by Cabinet ministers setting out their vision for Brexit.
Theresa May is due to gather senior ministers at her country residence on Thursday to discuss the ‘end state’ of relations with the EU.
The PM has been struggling to forge a united position as Brexiteer and Remain factions within her top team clash over how close ties should be.
Mr Davis has been on a charm offensive to reassure EU leaders that the UK can be relied on to deal fairly after we leave the bloc.
In his speech today he argued that a common commitment to high regulatory standards should ensure trade with the EU remains as ‘frictionless as possible’ after Brexit.
He said he ‘could not agree more’ with French President Emmanuel Macron – who recently warned that failure to forge broad international standards would undermine trust in gobalisation.
‘Brexit will inevitably mean a change in the way British, Austrian & other EU companies do business,’ Mr Davis said.
‘It has to if we’re to make good on the referendum result and carve a path for Britain to strike its own trade deals, its own immigration policy & make our courts sovereign once more.’
But he said there would be no ‘fundamental change’ to Britain’s values, and there would be no effort to ‘undermine’ the EU.
Mr Davis also criticised the European Commission, which has claimed that Brexit could lead to workers losing protections.
A presentation prepared by Michel Barnier’s Brexit taskforce last month said the UK could ditch rules around redundancies ‘in order to reduce cost and delays for collective dismissals’.
It also said ministers could ‘reduce levels of occupational safety and health’, which could lead to ‘higher exposure to chemicals and carcinogens resulting in lower production cost’.
Mr Davis insisted the Government will continue its track record of high standards outside the EU and had no intention of engaging in a new ‘race to the bottom’.
‘I know that for one reason or another there are some people who have sought to question that these really are our intentions,’ he said.
‘They fear that Brexit could lead to an Anglo-Saxon race to the bottom, with Britain plunged into a Mad Max-style world borrowed from dystopian fiction.
‘These fears about a race to the bottom are based on nothing – not history, not intention, nor interest.’
Mr Davis insisted the Government will continue its track record of high standards outside the EU and had no intention of engaging in a new ‘race to the bottom’ (file picture)
Mr Davis also criticised the European Commission, which has claimed that Brexit could lead to workers losing protections
Mr Davis pointed to Theresa May’s commitment to maintaining and enhancing workers’ rights, Chancellor Philip Hammond’s support for a stable European banking system and Environment Secretary Michael Gove’s ‘crusading zeal’ on animal welfare as examples of UK determination to lead a ‘race to the top’.
He said it is in the interests of both sides to be able to continue to trust each other’s regulations and the institutions that enforce them after Brexit.
‘Such mutual recognition will naturally require close, even-handed co-operation between these authorities and a common set of principles to guide them,’ he will say.
‘And the certainty that Britain’s plan, its blueprint for life outside of Europe, is a race to the top in global standards, not a regression from the high standards we have now, can provide the basis of the trust that means that Britain’s regulators and institutions can continue to be recognised.’
Mr Davis said that when one side or the other wishes to change its regulations, it will be essential to ensure it does not lead to the creation of ‘unnecessary barriers’ to trade.
‘Take a car produced here in Austria to be exported to the UK. Currently, that vehicle only has to undergo one series of approvals, in one country, to show that it meets the required regulatory standards and those approvals are accepted across the European Union.
‘That’s exactly the sort of arrangement we want to see maintained even after we leave the EU.’
Mr Davis said leaps in technology were posing new challenges for governments and they had to work together to ensure rules worked properly.
He revealed that he has a robot lawn mower – saying it was due to be cutting his grass as he spoke.
Regulations must be generated to help turn ‘inventive ideas into successful industries’, he said.
‘I soon expect to receive deliveries from Amazon by drone,’ he said. ‘In fact — at this very moment at my house in Yorkshire — a robot lawnmower, designed in Sweden and built using drone technology in the North East of England, is mowing the grass.
‘But if we are to realise the full potential of new aerial drone technology, we must also maintain our world-class aviation safety record — and address security and privacy concerns.’
Meanwhile, Australia last night raised the prospect of a lucrative trade deal with the UK after Brexit.
Julie Bishop, the country’s foreign minister, said: ‘When the circumstances are right, when the timing is right, Australia would be keen to pursue a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom. High quality, comprehensive, gold standard.’