8. Debate on NNDM6958 — The Prospects for a Brexit Deal Following the House of Commons Vote

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:20 pm on 30 January 2019.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of David Rees David Rees Labour 6:20, 30 January 2019

I'm pleased to follow my colleague Jack Sargeant because I think he brought back the reality of what goes on on the ground as a consequence of this whole issue. I was going to talk about the chaos last night we saw in Westminster, which was the culmination of two and half years of frantic efforts by a Government that didn't have a clue what it was doing. But it is important we remind ourselves of actually what 'no deal' does mean for the people we all represent. Every one of us was elected by the people of Wales and a 'no deal' impacts upon them more than us. Jack was quite right, we're probably in a position where it won't affect us so badly, but our constituents are—. I'll give you an example in my constituency, as Jack did in his: steelworks. You all know the steelworks in my constituency—you should by now, anyway—and we all know the challenge it was facing two years ago. And it's still facing challenges. I met with steelworkers this week and the consequences of a 'no deal' are—you might think, 'Well, there's not going to be much tariffs on steel, so it's not going to be a problem.' But, of course, they serve the automotive industry and there are huge tariffs on the automotive industry. So, 80 per cent of their market goes to the automotive industry. But the other aspect they serve is, obviously, to sell steel elsewhere. And on WTO rules—I offer UKIP an opportunity because in their amendment, they want to go to WTO rules. Tell me where WTO rules are better than what we have now? [Interruption.] Yes, I'm more than happy.