May, who favoured staying in the European Union but has promised to deliver on the June 23 referendum vote by steering Britain out of the bloc, said such systems were hard to manage and there was no “silver bullet” on immigration.
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She indicated that her drive to regain control over immigration would be balanced with the desire to get “the best deal possible” on trade for the United Kingdom in negotiations with other European Union states.
Mrs May also warned the Government would not be giving a “running commentary” on Brexit talks with Brussels as it could harm Britain’s position. “No-one expects him [Davis] to have worked out all the answers yet but we do expect him to set out the outline of some kind of plan”, she said.
“We want the best deal for trade in United Kingdom goods and services, including our world leading financial services industry”.
She ruled out a points-based immigration system, while her minister charged with negotiating Brexit, David Davis, said Britain did not need to be a member of the EU’s single market to have access to it. “Simply, it means the United Kingdom leaving the European Union”.
In the days following the Brexit referendum result, millions of people signed the petition calling for a second vote on membership.
“We will be ensuring that we seize the opportunities for growth and prosperity across the whole United Kingdom”.
“Preliminary discussions around what a post-Brexit Australia-UK trade deal might look like”.
When Andrew Tyrie, the chairman of the Treasury select committee, pressed him on whether the United Kingdom would remain inside the customs union once it left the EU, Davis said the government hadn’t yet decided whether to do this.
“Brexit must mean Brexit and it is up to every red-blooded democrat, no matter which side they were on before the result was known, to accept the clear electoral verdict and to pull together to deliver it as best we can”, said John Penrose, a Conservative politician.
Theresa May will discuss Brexit with European Council president Donald Tusk amid increasing pressure over a lack of detail in the Government’s stated strategy.
“You are a committed European Union member – sooner or later, your biggest trading partner and the country with which you share a long history will not be”.
They are expected to discuss Brexit, migration, trade and Ukraine over a working breakfast.
Meanwhile, Australia’s trade minister, Steven Ciobo predicted an agreement between the countries “when the time is right” – after the United Kingdom leaves the EU.
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She added: “We will be seizing the opportunities that leaving the European Union now gives us to forge a new role for the United Kingdom in the world”.
