10. Brexit Party Debate: UK Internal Market Bill

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 7:07 pm on 16 September 2020.

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Photo of Mark Reckless Mark Reckless Conservative 7:07, 16 September 2020

Diolch, Llywydd. And may I thank everyone very much indeed for their contributions, which I thought were largely temperate in tone? I think the debate, both here and in Westminster, is perhaps better today than it was a few days ago.

Neil Hamilton opened the debate, not to universal acclaim, I have to say, in the Chamber, but thank you, Neil. You referred to your campaigning also all your adult life against the European Union, and certainly your early membership of the Anti-Common Market League, and I think a very recent final ascension to lead UKIP may be in those categories, but I do also recall your vote on the paving motion in support of Maastricht, which I did feel was regrettable. 

Dai Lloyd spoke next, and he gave no welcome to this motion or the internal market Bill, which I don't think was a surprise to anyone. He spoke very strongly I felt. He said it would destroy two decades of devolution; it would trample on democracy. And he then said, 'Should people trust Wales or Westminster?' in an effort to 'other' Westminster as if there weren't Welsh MPs at Westminster. He then referred to it being unfair to England to pick the referee despite it being the UK Government, and then he himself managed to reset the clock. 

Gareth Bennett spoke next. He told us that he was representing the Abolish the Assembly Party. I think he then said he would vote for all his amendments. I didn't quite hear because of the ex-First Minister in his new role heckling from the backbench, along with the heckler in chief from across the aisle, so I didn't catch everything that Gareth said, but I thank him for his contribution. 

Darren Millar I certainly did hear, and he started his speech in very good manner, I thought, by applauding the Brexit Party. And, indeed, I see David Melding has recently joined, but we did have three out of three leavers on the Conservative benches in our physical session also to welcome the debate, which I appreciate. He reminded us that Boris Johnson said that Northern Ireland would leave the European Union with the UK as a whole. There would be no border along the Irish sea. There definitely wouldn't be any export declarations from Northern Ireland to Britain. And, I'm afraid, sir, I didn't believe him, because I consulted the withdrawal agreement and it appeared, to me, to provide for all those things. I underestimated his ability and willingness to rip it up after winning this great majority at the election. I, for my part, applaud what he is doing. I didn't think it was going to happen, but he's doing it, and I think it will greatly strengthen his negotiating position by increasing the cost to the EU of not doing a free-trade deal, because they will lose the Northern Ireland protocol.

I think that he said that there was going to be a lot more spending from the UK Government in Wales, which, of course, I would welcome. They seem to be printing an awful lot of money—hopefully they can use it to get on with building the M4 relief road, amongst other things.