The prime minister has repeatedly said she won’t formally begin the exit process before the end of this year. “We have the opportunity to forge a new positive role for the U.K.in the world”, May said.
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A Downing Street spokesman said: “Ministers agreed that we should be seizing the opportunity of Brexit to confirm the UK’s place as one of the great trading nations in the world, fostering entrepreneurialism and setting out a long-term vision for the country”.
Ministers discussed Brexit during a meeting of the political cabinet, which officials do not attend and for which no minutes are taken.
May then told the cabinet “quite a lot of work has been done” on the European Union referendum result over the summer – and repeated her mantra that Brexit means Brexit.
May gathered her cabinet team on Wednesday morning at Chequers to discuss Britain’s divorce from the bloc.
“We must continue to be very clear that “Brexit means Brexit”, that we’re going to make a success of it”.
Ministers heard an update of the economic outlook from Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, who has hinted at a tax and spending boost for the economy later this year.
“Cabinet members were clear that it is the United Kingdom’s government’s decision to establish its terms and on when to trigger Article 50”, the premier’s office said.
Wednesday’s meeting at the prime minister’s country residence is being seen as an opportunity for Mrs May and senior colleagues to talk through many issues involved ahead of this weekend’s summit of G20 leaders in China.
However, the local media said there are divisions in the Cabinet about the future relations of that country with the EU.
Although this meeting was meant to consolidate the government’s position on Brexit negotiation, what London will seek from Brussels remains unclear.
Earlier, Ms May appeared to rule out seeking an arrangement such as that enjoyed by Norway, which is outside the EU but is part of the European single market and allows free movement of people from the EU. At the moment, I don’t think we know that.
Thank you very much for coming together today. However, experts claim that any limit on this could put our access to the single market under threat.
But prominent Brexit supporter and Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg told the programme: “The expectation or desire to remain in the single market is basically code for rejecting the referendum result”.
“People have been assuming there will have to be restrictions on immigration of some sort, either an emergency brake, or an Australian-style points system for European workers”, he told the Guardian.
May, who became prime minister last month following David Cameron’s resignation, created a new ministry – the Department for Exiting the European Union – to coordinate Britain’s exit negotiations and appointed David Davis, a prominent critic of the EU, as its secretary of state.
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A WORCESTERSHIRE politician has attacked one of Germany’s most senior politicians over Brexit – telling him to “keep his nose out of United Kingdom affairs”.
