Jeremy Miles: Mark Drakeford.
Jeremy Miles: Thank you, Dirprwy Lywydd. As we sit here, our colleagues in the UK Parliament are reaching the end of their elongated debate on the Government’s proposed EU withdrawal deal. They will vote later and it’s likely the Prime Minister’s deal will be defeated, probably quite heavily. We are scheduled to leave the European Union in 73 days, and there is no kind of deal in place. We have...
Jeremy Miles: The result is a deal which represents an obvious retreat from the Prime Minister's arrogant red lines and her pretence that we can have the same access to the single market without subscribing to its rule, but which fails in the cobbled-together political declaration to secure firm guarantees over this country's economic future. The deal does not remove the threat of a perilous cliff edge; it...
Jeremy Miles: The Member talks about the inconvenient truth. I'm afraid the inconvenient truth is this: that people in Wales were promised there would be no damage to their job prospects as a consequence of leaving the European Union; they were promised there would be not a penny less coming into Wales from European funding sources; they were promised sunny, sunlit uplands by those campaigning to leave the...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for his question. On the point of extending article 50, we have been calling for this because it is evident that we need more space in order to arrive at the right point with regard to a deal that works for Wales and for the United Kingdom. Having an opportunity to have those discussions would be a prize worth winning for all, and that we have a plan that gives the...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that question. Firstly, with regard to the extension of article 50, I think he's right to say that. I think that finding a resolution to this is going to need an extension to article 50. That's certainly what we've been calling on the Government in Westminster to seek from the other European Union members. In relation to the work of preparation, he's absolutely right to...
Jeremy Miles: Clearly, unless there's an extension to article 50, 29 March has always been the date at which we leave the European Union. The question is on what basis does that happen? I'm afraid that the notion that leaving without a deal is just one scenario that we could just plan for is for the birds. The truth of it is that leaving without a deal is very bad news for Wales and very bad news for the...
Jeremy Miles: I thank Rhianon for her question. The notion that a Government that is unable to take through the House of Commons its policy on the defining issue of the day should not seek a dissolution of Parliament would be very novel in our constitution. It would be exactly what follows, as night follows day, in any circumstance. So, it is right that the Government will face a motion of no confidence....
Jeremy Miles: On that last point, I am reflecting on the legal context of that discussion. Can I firstly say, in relation to the reports that the committee that he chairs has produced on a range of preparedness issues, in particular towards the latter part of last year, that I've found them very beneficial? And I know that colleagues in Government are considering them with a view to issuing, obviously,...
Jeremy Miles: Leaving the EU will damage the economy. The failure of the UK Government to secure parliamentary agreement for their deal risks a 'no deal' outcome. The Prime Minister must commit to negotiate an EU exit as outlined in 'Securing Wales’ Future', which remains the least damaging form of Brexit.
Jeremy Miles: There is work going on in relation to that. I should just say that the Minister for Economy and Transport has held round-tables with large employers in north-east Wales over the course of the last year, including Airbus. We all know, as the Member indicated in his question, that Airbus was one of the companies that were very clear about their position if we were to leave the European Union...
Jeremy Miles: Thank you for that question. I was aware of the event on Friday 11 January, which the First Minister attended, and also the Minister for the economy, and I noted that it was a very interesting discussion and a good opportunity to hear at first hand the sort of anxieties that employers large and small are feeling in north-east Wales. I know the work that the Member himself is doing in his own...
Jeremy Miles: Welsh Ministers have discussed matters relating to Brexit with the Irish Government, principally via the British Irish Council, which I attended on 9 November 2018. I have also contacted my Irish Government counterpart to open up further dialogue and build upon existing close relationships.
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for the question. In terms of article 50, we take every opportunity to ensure that Governments understand our position on that. We called more recently on the Prime Minister in Westminster to ensure an extension on that to enable the discussions to go on. In terms of the collaborative relationship between Wales and Ireland, the Member talks about INTERREG. We have, of...
Jeremy Miles: We have waited for two years to hear what the UK Government's view is on the basis upon which we should leave the European Union—two years. Two years ago, this Government, together with Plaid Cymru, launched a paper that set out, with a very clear evidence base, the kind of relationship Wales should have with the European Union after Brexit. We were able to do that two years ago, working...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that question. One of the points that requires clarification in the UK Government's proposals is its reference to checks being undertaken in the least intrusive possible way. That needs to be understood better. But the issue of the backstop, of course, if the sorts of proposals were adopted that we have been advocating here, would not arise. And whilst the backstop is...
Jeremy Miles: Well, as the Member says, there is a motion of no confidence before the House of Commons today. I have read the same speculation as he has in relation to whether that will succeed or fail. I should say that it would be extraordinary for a UK Government to fail to get its principal policy adopted and supported in the House of Commons and then continue in Government. It would be pretty much...
Jeremy Miles: I'll try again and outline our position. We have called on the Prime Minister to reach out across the House of Commons to seek to find a basis on which a better deal could be agreed. She has said yesterday that she intends to do that. She should do that, and include the opposition frontbenches in doing so. She should drop the red lines that she has insisted on—fruitlessly in many...
Jeremy Miles: The timetable for understanding what the possible alternative deals are remains unclear at this point. I have said—I think twice now, in response to the Member's questions—that a public vote, giving the public a final say in this, may well be the means of resolving this. I would support that as a final say. But, having called for these discussions to take place, the Prime Minister having...
Jeremy Miles: Indeed. The First Minister, in making his new Cabinet, has included a new portfolio in relation to international relations generally, and a part of that portfolio relates to developing the relationships between Wales and the rest of the world and enhancing even further the work we do in relation to making Wales attractive as a trading destination.
