10 DOWNING STREET
LONDON SWIA 2A,
‘THE PRIME MINISTER 8 July 2018
Dear David
Thank you for your letter explaining your decision to resign as Secretary of
State for Exiting the European Union.
Lam sorry that you have chosen to leave the Government when we have already
made so much progress towards delivering a smooth and successfull Brexit, and
when we are only eight months from the date set in law when the
United Kingdom will leave the European Union.
‘At Chequers on Friday, we as the Cabinet agreed a comprehensive and detailed
proposal which provides a precise, responsible, and credible basis for
progressing our negotiations towards a new relationship between the UK and
the EU after we leave in March. We set out how we will deliver on the result of
the referendum and the commitments we made in our manifesto for the 2017
general election:
Leaving the EU on 29 March 2019.
Ending free movement and taking back control of our borders.
No more sending vast sums of money each year to the EU.
A new business-friendly customs model with freedom to strike new trade
deals around the world.
5. A UK-EU free trade area with a common rulebook for industrial goods
and agricultural products which will be good for jobs.
6. A commitment to maintain high standards on consumer and employment
rights and the environment.
A Parliamentary lock on all new rules and regulations.
Leaving the Common Agricultural Policy and the Common Fisheries
Policy.
9. Restoring the supremacy of British courts by ending the jurisdiction of
the European Court of Justice in the UK.
10. No hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, or between
Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Pyne11. Continued, close co-operation on security to keep our people safe.
12, An independent foreign and defence policy, working closely with the EU
and other allies.
This is consistent with the mandate of the referendum and with the
commitments we laid out in our general election manifesto: leaving the single
market and the customs union but seeking a deep and special partnership
including a comprehensive free trade and customs agreement; ending the vast
annual contributions to the EU; and pursuing fair, orderly negotiations,
minimising disruption and giving as much certainty as possible so both sides
benefit.
As we said in our manifesto, we believe it is necessary to agree the terms of our
future partnership alongside our withdrawal, reaching agreement on both within
the two years allowed by Article 0. I have always agreed with you that these
two must go alongside one another, but if we are to get sufficient detail about
our future partnership, we need to act now. We have made a significant move: it
is for the EU now to respond in the same spirit.
I do not agree with your characterisation of the policy we agreed at Cabinet on
Friday. Parliament will decide whether or not to back the deal the Government
negotiates, but that deal will undoubtedly mean the returning of powers from
Brussels to the United Kingdom. The direct effect of EU law will end when we
leave the EU. Where the UK chooses to apply a common rulebook, each rule
will have to be agreed by Parliament. Choosing not to sign up to certain rules
would lead to consequences for market access, security co-operation or the
frictionless border, but that decision will rest with our sovereign Parliament,
which will have a lock on whether to incorporate those rules into the UK legal
order.
I am sorry that the Government will not have the benefit of your continued
expertise and counsel as we secure this deal and complete the process of leaving
the EU, but I would like to thank you warmly for everything you have done
over the past two years as Secretary of State to shape our departure from the
EU, and the new role the UK will forge on the world stage as an independent,
self-governing nation once again.You returned to Government after nineteen years to lead an entirely new
Department responsible for a vital, complex, and unprecedented task. You have
helped to steer through Parliament some of the most important legislation for
generations, including the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Act
2017 and the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, which received Royal
Assent last week. These landmark Acts, and what they will do, stand as
testament to your work and our commitment to honouring the result of the
referendum.
Yours sincerely
4) 2
The Right Honourable David Davis MP