Most top UK ministers back Brexit transition period

London (Reuters): Senior British government ministers are becoming convinced of the need for transitional arrangements to reduce disruption as Britain leaves the European Union, finance minister Philip Hammond said on Sunday.

Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, speaks on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show in London

Hammond, who supported remaining in the EU at last year’s referendum, is seen as the voice of a so-called ‘soft Brexit’ within Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet, favouring prioritising trade ties with the EU over curbing immigration.

He has repeatedly talked about the need for a transitional deal, saying such an arrangement would see Britain replicate as much as possible the existing arrangements in order to minimise the impact on business.

“Five weeks ago the idea of a transition period was quite a new concept, I think now you would find that pretty much everybody around the cabinet table accepts that there will be some kind of transition,” Hammon d told the BBC’s Andrew Marr show.

“We’re into a real process now with the start of negotiations and I think you’ll find the cabinet rallying around a position that maximises our negotiating leverage and gets the best possible deal for Britain.”Brexit minister David Davis is due in Brussels on Monday for a first full round of Brexit talks.Hammond said the government needed to provide as much clarity as possible, as soon as possible, to restore business and consumer confidence and get the economy moving.

UK trade minister says Brexit transition period acceptable with time limits

LONDON (Reuters) - Trade minister Liam Fox said on Sunday he would be happy to accept a transitional period when Britain leaves the European Union but that it must be within a time limit and give Britain the freedom to negotiate its own trade deals.

Earlier on Sunday, finance minister Philip Hammond had said senior British government ministers were becoming convinced of the need for transitional arrangements to reduce disruption as Britain leaves the EU.

“I don’t have a problem with the transition period as long as is time-limited,” Fox, who supported leaving the EU at last year’s referednum, told BBC TV.

“I want in a transitional period to be able to negotiate agreements at that point, what we can’t have is a putting off of the point where we have freedom to negotiate our trade agreements.”

Fox also said it would be “foolish” to go into the Brexit negotiations without being prepared to walk away, saying Britain’s negotiating partners needed to believe Britain would do so rather than accept a bad deal.

“It is absolutely clear that businesses, where they have discretion over investment, where they can hold off, are doing so and you can understand why, they are waiting for more clarity about what the future relationship with Europe will look like,” he said.

Hammond said the length of any transitional period would depend on how long is needed to get new systems in place to handle areas such as customs and immigration, but it should be a defined period and was likely to need to be “a couple of years”.

Caption

Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, speaks on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show in London, Britain 16 July – Reuters