Speaking in China yesterday Theresa May once more ruled out the introduction of an Aussie-style points based system at the border – saying it would not control numbers.
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“No mention of the promised £350 million for the NHS, no mention of the Brexiteers’ points-based immigration system: instead there were warm words and hot air”. They enjoy privileged access to EU markets, but only in return for accepting free movement of EU citizens across their borders, and for paying into the EU budget.
Mr Davis, flanked by Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, insisted there would be no attempt to “delay, frustrate or thwart” the will of the British people for the country to leave the EU.
But MPs on all sides protested that Mr Davis had failed to deliver, beyond stating a determination to get “the best deal for Britain” and a unique agreement, rather than an “off-the-shelf solution”.
Koji Tsuruoka said he had spoken with executives at leading Japanese firms in the United Kingdom and none of them wanted to pull out. He added later that he doesn’t think that this decision represents “a simple trade off – that an immigration control system that suits our country is necessarily one that will preclude a good trade relationship with the European Union”.
“I think what we need to be doing is making sure that we can get the best possible deal for the United Kingdom when we leave the EU. An optimistic tone is not enough and the phrase “Brexit means Brexit” has surely passed its shelf life”, said Anna Soubry, who voted to remain in the EU. The 15-page document spelled out Japan’s worries for its companies operating in Britain and called for British Prime Minister Theresa May and the E.U.to negotiate a deal that safeguarded nearly all of the U.K.’s rights in the single market. Such a system would see potential immigrants awarded points according to the skills, education and other factors to judge whether they should be allowed in.
A spokeswoman said: “One of the opportunities of Brexit is that we will be able to control the number of people coming to Britain from the EU”.
Tory MP Anna Soubry, a spokesperson for the Open Britain campaign group, also said in a statement: “We are none the wiser about the government’s plans after David Davis’s statement”.
According to European Union officials, formal negotiations with Brussels itself can not start until London triggers Article 50, the treaty provision governing its up to two-year-long departure from the grouping.
More than two months have passed since the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union and the British government has still not revealed any details about how it plans to reshape relations with its most important trading partner.
However, he warned that while the economic impact of the Brexit vote had been “proven to be wrong”, the United Kingdom should “not get too optimistic before we close the deal”.
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Farage may be anxious that May’s insistence on the government being “able to decide” is a way to give herself wiggle room in upcoming negotiations with the EU.
