Comment Central, May 28, Graham Stringer MP
Keir Starmer made it crystal clear that the Labour Party is not in favour of extending the Brexit transition period.
Keir told LBC Radio “I would seek to ensure that the negotiations were completed as quickly as possible. I’ve not called for a pause because the government says its going to get it done by the end of the year”.
A new report by the Centre for Brexit Policy (CBP), which warns that extending the transition period could cost the UK at least £380 billion and scupper the nation’s Coronavirus recovery plan, shows that the Labour Leader was absolutely right to commit to the December 31st deadline.
The report, launched on Sunday by the cross-party CBP, sets out the economic Armageddon the UK would face if the transition period is extended beyond the end of this year.
Britain would continue to contribute £11 billion a year net to the EU budget, lose lucrative free trade agreements from outside of the EU, lose the economic benefits of better UK controlled business regulation and better controlled unskilled migration.
More worryingly, the UK could be liable for bailing out a bankrupt Eurozone and there would be further monetary requests from the new EU budget cycle that starts on January 1st 2021.
The report calculates that if Brexit were delayed for two years then implemented in full, this would cost £380 billion. However, if delay led to Brexit not happening the cost would rocket up to £4.6 trillion.
Click here to read the piece in full.
Click here to read the report in full.