Politics
British Lawmaker of Indian Origin Supports Stand Up 4 Brexit Campaign
Patel has extended her support to “Stand Up 4 Brexit”, which wants an end of free movement and is opposed to keeping Britain aligned with EU standards on goods. The group is against any negotiations with the European Union leading to a soft Brexit.
Priti Patel, the Conservative party lawmaker of Indian origin has extended her support to the “Stand Up 4 Brexit” campaign, which is against any negotiations with the European Union leading to a soft Brexit. About 20 lawmakers of the ruling Conservative party have rebelled and come together to oppose British Prime Minister Theresa May’s new Brexit plans.
Patel, who resigned as the Secretary of State for International Development last November, has been a vocal supporter of referendum since June 2016, conducted for Britain’s exit from European Union. She has also been calling for tougher stands in negotiating with Brussels, the de facto capital of European Union (EU), reported PTI.
The lawmakers have challenged the Chequers Plan, which according to them will give more power to EU in trade negotiations and free movement of goods from and into Britain. Chequers Plan is named after Chequers or Chequers Court, a 16th century manor that is also the country house of the British Prime Minister, where British Cabinet had met in July to arrive at a compromise deal for Brexit.
According to BBC, Chequers Plan is the Government’s Brexit white paper, which is “aimed at ensuring trade cooperation, with no hard border for Northern Ireland, and global trade deals for the UK.”
As per a report in The Times, “Stand Up 4 Brexit” wants an end of free movement and is opposed to keeping Britain aligned with EU standards on goods. It is also raising other points in May’s Brexit strategy which indicate “compromises.”
Former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson wrote a column in ‘The Daily Telegraph’ on Sept.3 attacking the Prime Minister’s plans and called Chequers Plan as a “disaster” for Britain. Johnson, who has also been the Mayor of London, had resigned over the Chequers compromise along with the former Brexit secretary David Davis.
Johnson compared Britain’s exit negotiations between Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab and the EU’s Michel Barnier to a rigged wrestling match, in which the victory of EU was inevitable, reported The Daily Mail. He said that the real ‘scandal’ was ‘not that we have failed, but that we have not even tried’ on Brexit.
However, Prime Minister May wrote in her column a few days back that she was “confident” a “good deal” could be reached on Brexit, as per PTI report. It quoted her statement as, “Our white paper proposals are a good deal for Britain. They will allow frictionless trade in goods and agricultural products, protecting the jobs that depend on just in time supply chains.”