Andrea Leadsom attacks Theresa May customs plan as ‘unwieldy and impractical’
2 min read
Andrea Leadsom has openly criticised Theresa May’s favoured customs relationship with the European Union as ‘unwieldy and impractical’ and with too much red tape for businesses.
The Leader of the Commons said the so-called customs partnership could get “complicated” as she became the third Brexiteer cabinet minister to openly dismiss the plans.
“I think the custom partnership looks quite bureaucratic and unwieldy, it has implications for needing to keep alignment with a lot of EU product regulations and so on,” she told the Daily Telegraph.
“That does seem to lend itself to a more technology-driven solution than one where you’re seeking to pick up tariffs on third parties which can get complicated.”
She continued: “The problem with complications, particularly for businesses, they are not keen on more bureaucracy, more red tape.
“That is potentially a less attractive option for businesses themselves.”
The ‘customs partnership’ with the EU is one of two options being considered by the Prime Minister as an arrangement with the EU after Brexit.
The scheme, favoured by the Prime Minister and her allies, would collect import tariffs on behalf of Brussels in an attempt to keep a frictionless border in Ireland.
The debate has split ministers, with Brexiteers known to favour the alternative maximum facilitation programme, which relies more on remote technology.
Her intervention comes after Boris Johnson stoked controversy by branding the idea “crazy” while Michael Gove warned “significant question marks” hung over the “flawed” plan.
Elsewhere in the interview, the former leadership challenger to Theresa May in 2016 said she was “astonished” that committed Remainers cannot see the “vast” opportunities of Brexit – such as control of money and borders and Commonwealth free trade deals.
“I do find it astonishing that some people can't see that. I absolutely understand a natural reluctance to change, but the opportunities for the UK are vast as we leave the EU,” she added.
“I totally understand and respect people who take the opposite view to me - there needs to be safety in numbers, we need to be in the EU, we need to stick together - but in my opinion, the opportunities far outweigh those risks. I feel entirely optimistic about the future.”
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