David Davis denied that his Brexit transition plan will turn the UK into a ‘vassal state’ today – as he insisted the deal can be tied up within eight weeks.
The Brexit Secretary was told the UK will still be subservient to Brussels after we formally leave in March next year – accepting free movement rules and paying into the bloc’s coffers.
But in a bruising exchange with Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg, Mr Davis dismissed the criticism urging him to wait and see what emerges from the talks.
The clash came as Mr Davis gave evidence to the cross-party Brexit Committee at parliament this morning.
In a bruising exchange with Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg, Mr Davis dismissed criticisms of transition plans urging him to wait and see what emerges from the talks
Mr Rees-Mogg took the Brexit Secretary to task over the proposals for sticking to EU rules after March 2019
There have been claims that Brussels is dragging its feet on a transition deal in order to increase pressure on the UK, with France in particular mounting a raid on nervous financial services firms.
But asked when a deal would be agreed, Mr Davis said: ‘Oh I would expect it before the end of March.
‘It wasn’t said in terms, but that was pretty much intimated in the Commission’s briefing documents in December.’
Mr Davis also appeared to contradict EU opposite number Michel Barnier, who has claimed the real talks on future trade arrangements will not begin until after the UK formally leaves.
Mr Davis said the ‘substance’ of a trade agreement will be sealed before March 2019, warning that it would be a mistake to allow negotiations to carry on into the proposed transition period.
‘It would be unwise to get sucked into a negotiation during the transition period itself which is substantive, major,’ he said.
‘Why? Because the balance of power in the negotiation alters. The aim then on the part of the commission would be to spin out the negotiation.’
Mr Davis said he expected a clash with the European Union over whether the UK will be able to seek its own trade deals during the transition period.
Mr Rees-Mogg asked how Britain would not be a ‘vassal state’ when it was going to be paying into EU coffers and accepting EU laws, without having a say over how rules are set.
But Mr Davis insisted that the transition period was not a ‘deferral’ of Brexit.
Mr Davis was giving evidence to the cross-party Brexit committee in parliament today
‘Firstly we will not be members of the union, we will be replicating to a very large extent the operations of the single market and customs union in order to make sure there is a single change, from the point of view of businesses in particular,’ he said.
‘We will not be subject to the duty of sincere co-operation, which is what stops us arriving at trade deals now, negotiating and signing trade deals now, so that freedom will exist.’
But he added: ‘There may be an argument over the issue of doing outside negotiations, there may well be an argument over that.’
The UK’s approach was one that ‘visibly does no harm to the European Union’ but ‘there are people within the union who want to restrict any advantage for us,’ he added.