9. Debate: The Second Anniversary of the EU Referendum

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:27 pm on 19 June 2018.

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Photo of David Rees David Rees Labour 6:27, 19 June 2018

I'll come on to this, because it's a very interesting point. It's clear to me that the current Government has no negotiating skills whatsoever, is actually going into the negotiations not understanding that negotiation is a two-way process, and you have to understand both sides' arguments and where both sides wish to get to. It is clear that the UK Government doesn't understand that and is going into this thinking that it has the sole given right to actually dictate the way it wants, and not recognising the other side's position. That is not the way to negotiate, and, in fact, they might want to go to the trade unions and learn a bit about negotiations.

Now, the hard fact is that Theresa May actually fails to stand up to the hard Brexiteers in her own party, and, as has already been mentioned, those in her Cabinet in particular. So, there's a very real possibility that she cannot get a deal because they will not allow her to have one. That's going to be catastrophic for us. It will mean lower export figures, lower growth, lower investment, fewer jobs, and smaller incomes. That's what our constituents may face as a consequence of that. Terrible news for Wales, and, let's be honest, it's terrible news for the whole of the UK—every part of the UK.

Now, let's be clear, I've heard twice already today about the fact that, if we raise these issues, we are moaning and trying to derail the Brexit process. It's not about derailing. It's about getting the right deal for our people, the ones we represent. Failure to speak up is a failure to do our job. It is important that we make sure that the Brexit that will happen is done to give us the best options. People's resilience and determination to protect the future of the UK outside of the EU should not be confused or misunderstood as an intent to subvert it. It's just a smokescreen to hide the failures of a Tory Government. The challenge of building a path that offers a strong future outside the EU has been made more difficult by the failures of the UK Government, the weakness and the lack of a coherent strategy. It's damaging the UK; it's making us a laughing stock, to be honest, and there's no good in that. They don't have a strategy in place, they don't have ideas, they haven't told the EU what they want to try and achieve. What would you expect? If I went into negotiations, I'd know exactly what I wanted to try and do. The EU has told us what their negotiating stance is; they're not hiding it. We are. There we go.

We've seen throughout the discussions and we heard today from Neil Hamilton, 'Shift the blame to the EU.' Well, I'm sorry to say, 'Shift the blame to the Tories, because they're the ones that are failing.' The EU have been clear from day 1 what they want and what their target is, the Tories are just trying to protect and hide because they haven't got a clue what they want. It's important that we address this matter. Mick Antoniw has also said that tomorrow will be another interesting question when the debate comes back to the Tory party, 'Do you accept a meaningful vote or not?' It's chaos up there; it is total chaos and we are the ones paying the price.

There's a long way to go in these negotiations, there's a lot of work to be done and just to quote a famous person, Michel Barnier, because we all talk about him, 'The clock is ticking', and the lack of negotiating skills is not helping us whatsoever. Compromise and pragmatism are required and, inevitably, both sides will have to give way in certain areas—that's what negotiating means. Their job is to come to an agreed outcome that protects jobs and provides security for future generations of the UK and of the EU, and I second that: both sides need to look at it.

Llywydd, I've often stated that, on 23 June 2016, the British people voted to leave the EU; they did not vote to leave Europe. The question put to them was about the EU. They certainly did not vote to see us disadvantaged because the political elite in London failed to negotiate a good deal.