Highlights of prime minister's speech at the Conservative Party Conference.
Britain will trigger the formal divorce process from
the European Union by the end of March 2017, Prime Minister Theresa May said on
Sunday.
Following are key parts
of May's speech to the Conservative Party Conference.
"The referendum result was clear. It was
legitimate. It was the biggest vote for change this country has ever
known. Brexit means Brexit—and we're going to make a success of it.
"Everything we do
as we leave the EU will be consistent with the law and our treaty obligations,
and we must give as much certainty as possible to employers and
investors. That means there can be no sudden and unilateral withdrawal: We
must leave in the way agreed in law by Britain and other member states, and
that means invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.
"Having voted to
leave, I know that the public will soon expect to see, on the horizon, the
point at which Britain does formally leave the European Union."
ON ARTICLE 50
"We will invoke
Article 50 no later than the end of March next year."
It "is not up to
the House of Commons to invoke Article 50, and it is not up to the House of
Lords. It is up to the government to trigger Article 50, and the
government alone.
"Those people who
argue that Article 50 can only be triggered after agreement in both Houses of
Parliament are not standing up for democracy, they're trying to subvert
it. They're not trying to get Brexit right, they're trying to kill it by
delaying it."
ON EU LAW
"We will soon put
before Parliament a Great Repeal Bill, which will remove from the statute
book—once and for all—the European Communities Act.
"This historic bill—which will be included in the
next Queen's Speech—will mean that the 1972 Act, the legislation that gives
direct effect to all EU law in Britain, will no longer apply from the date upon
which we formally leave the European Union. And its effect will be
clear. Our laws will be made not in Brussels but in Westminster. The
judges interpreting those laws will sit not in Luxembourg but in courts in this
country. The authority of EU law in Britain will end.
"As we repeal the
European Communities Act, we will convert the 'acquis'—that is, the body of
existing EU law—into British law. When the Great Repeal Bill is given
Royal Assent, parliament will be free—subject to international agreements and
treaties with other countries and the EU on matters such as trade—to amend,
repeal and improve any law it chooses. But by converting the acquis into
British law, we will give businesses and workers maximum certainty as we leave
the European Union.
"The same rules and
laws will apply to them after Brexit as they did before. Any changes in
the law will have to be subject to full scrutiny and proper Parliamentary
debate. And let me be absolutely clear: existing workers' legal rights
will continue to be guaranteed in law—and they will be guaranteed as long as I
am prime minister."
ON HARD AND SOFT BREXIT
"There is no such
thing as a choice between 'soft Brexit' and 'hard Brexit.' This line of
argument—in which 'soft Brexit' amounts to some form of continued EU membership
and 'hard Brexit' is a conscious decision to reject trade with Europe—is simply
a false dichotomy. And it is one that is too often propagated by people
who, I am afraid to say, have still not accepted the result of the
referendum."
ON BRITISH RELATIONS WITH EU
"It is not,
therefore, a negotiation to establish a relationship anything like the one we
have had for the last 40 years or more. So it is not going to a 'Norway
model.' It’s not going to be a 'Switzerland model.' It is going to be
an agreement between an independent, sovereign United Kingdom and the European
Union."
ON IMMIGRATION AND EU
MARKETS
"I know some people
ask about the 'trade-off' between controlling immigration and trading with
Europe. But that is the wrong way of looking at things. We have voted to
leave the European Union and become a fully-independent, sovereign
country. We will do what independent, sovereign countries do. We will
decide for ourselves how we control immigration. And we will be free to
pass our own laws.
"I want that deal
to reflect the kind of mature, cooperative relationship that close friends and
allies enjoy. I want it to include cooperation on law enforcement and
counter-terrorism work. I want it to involve free trade, in goods and
services. I want it to give British companies the maximum freedom to trade
with and operate in the single market—and let European businesses do the same
here. But let me be clear. We are not leaving the European Union
only to give up control of immigration again. And we are not leaving only
to return to the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice."
ON GLOBAL TRADE
"It was a vote for
Britain to stand tall, to believe in ourselves, to forge an ambitious and
optimistic new role in the world.
"Countries
including Canada, China, India, Mexico, Singapore and South Korea have already
told us they would welcome talks on future free trade agreements. And we
have already agreed to start scoping discussions on trade agreements with
Australia and New Zealand."
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