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Boris Johnson has claimed that no prime minister would be correct to accept the trade terms offered by the EU, as he prepares to fly to Brussels for the latest talks.
When asked in the House of Commons by veteran Conservative supporter Edward Leigh about the prospects for a deal, Johnson said: “Our friends in the EU are currently insisting that if they pass a new law in the future that we in this country we do not comply or do not follow their example, so they want the automatic right to punish us and retaliate.
And secondly, they are saying that the UK should be the only country in the world that does not have sovereign control over its fishing waters. I don’t think those are terms that any prime minister of this country should accept. “
Johnson appeared to the prime minister’s questions before traveling to Brussels to talk over a dinner with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
When questioned by Labor leader Keir Starmer about the risks of a no-deal exit from the transition period on January 1, Johnson said the UK would be “a magnet for foreign investment”, whatever the outcome.
“Jobs will be created in this country, across the UK, not just despite Brexit, but because of Brexit,” he said. “In fact, this country will become a magnet for foreign investment; in fact, it already is and will continue to be so. “
He said the UK “will prosper” whether the outcome of the negotiations is “a Canadian solution or an Australian solution.”
The “Australian solution” is Johnson’s shorthand for a no-deal exit from the transition period on January 1, under which the EU would impose tariffs on British goods.
Starmer accused the prime minister of failing to achieve the “oven-ready” Brexit deal he had bragged about during last year’s election campaign. But Johnson said he had referred to the withdrawal agreement, which allowed the UK to exit the EU on January 31 this year.
“We had a kiln-ready agreement, which was the withdrawal agreement, whereby this country left the customs union, left the single market and kept our promises,” he said.
He added that, as a result, the UK could implement a new immigration regime, raise animal welfare standards and strike new trade deals with other countries.
The prime minister also attacked Starmer, who appeared via video link because he isolates himself, over the fact that the Labor Party did not say whether it would vote for a Brexit deal, accusing him of being “like a sphinx” about the topic.
Starmer said no decision will be made until there is an agreement to discuss, adding: “My party will vote in the national interest.”
He pointed to forecasts from the independent Office of Budgetary Responsibility suggesting that “the cost of leaving the EU without a deal would be higher unemployment, higher inflation and a smaller economy.”
