Susan Murray

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Barker. I thank the petitioners for bringing forward the petition, and every single person in the UK who signed it. Brexit was sold as a boost to growth. The Trade Secretary at the time told the public that a trade deal “should be one of the easiest in human history.” What we got was no deal and an economic hit that saw productivity fall and trade shrink. Brexit was sold as taking back control of our borders, and voters were promised that migration would be reduced. Instead, it has hit record levels, and by leaving we lost the EU arrangements that let us send people who had arrived illegally back to the EU. The Government know what Europe is worth for both trade and security. Their response to the petition boasts of two deals, on food standards and carbon trading, which will add nearly £9 billion a year to the economy by 2040. They can see the potential, but their own red lines are holding them back. We have all heard from businesses in our constituencies that are being strangled by red tape. They talk about the paperwork, the checks and the delays at the border. They know what the issue is and we know how to fix it, but look at what they are being offered. On one side, Reform and the Conservatives insist that Brexit is working. On the other, the Government can see the damage but have drawn red lines around a solution. Neither gets a single lorry through customs any faster, but a customs union would. The Government will soon sit down with the EU at the second UK-EU summit in Brussels. They will talk about food standards, carbon trading and youth visas. The new Prime Minister appears to be looking seriously at resetting the UK-EU relationship and taking the first steps towards a new alliance with the EU. I therefore urge the Minister to listen to the petitioners, to businesses and to the British people, and remove the red lines that are holding back growth.