Minister refuses to deny Tory peer quit government over Brexit policy
4 min read
A minister has failed to deny that a Tory peer quit the Government over its handling of Brexit.
Greg Hands – who today took over the role of international trade minister from Lord Price – twice refused to confirm whether his predecessor was fully behind the Government’s Brexit strategy.
The Government announced this morning that the former Waitrose boss would be leaving his role after just over a year to pursue ‘business and writing interests’, while Mr Hands would be promoted from his position as Minister of State for Trade and Investment.
While Mr Hands is to take overall responsibility for the trade policy portfolio at the Department for International Trade (DIT), a new Lords minister will be appointed to focus on promoting British exports.
Asked on BBC 5Live’s Pienaar’s Politics whether Lord Price was “100%” behind ministers’ plans on Brexit, Mr Hands would only reinforce the peer’s earlier remarks that he saw the role as “time-limited” from the start.
“Lord Price has been a key part of the whole strategy, he’s been the minister for trade policy for the last year, he’s been a government minister with us for a year and a half, it was always going to be a time limited period, his time in government, it was very good of him to join us, he was managing director at Waitrose, he’s going to go back to business, he’s written a couple of books,” he said.
When again pressed on the issue, the Chelsea and Fulham MP said: “We’ve had a very good relationship, we’ve worked very closely together as a trade department.
“Interestingly in the last reshuffle we were the only government department that wasn’t changed at all, because we worked so well together.
“I think Liam Fox, Lord Price, myself, Mark Garnier, it’s been a good team. The Lord Price appointment has always been for a time limited period in common with people coming from business into government in that role before and this one is no different.
Lord Adonis, the former Labour minister and now non-ministerial adviser to the Government, said Lord Price's move, on top of Lord Bridges' resignation from the Brexit department in June, meant there was now nobody “competent” to defend ministers' Brexit position in the House of Lords.
In a series of scathing tweets he said Lord Price found it “impossible” to defend the Government’s Brexit plans because he is a “serious guy” and that the Lords frontbench is now “weaker than ever before.”
In his resignation statement, Lord Price said: "It has been an honour to serve as Minister for Trade and Investment and then Trade Policy following the EU referendum.
“Having visited 35 countries since then I am certain that there is a huge appetite to build new and develop existing trade agreements with the UK.
“The Trade Policy team is well prepared for that work and I wish them every success.
"I previously said I would be working within government for a time-limited period, and will now be leaving to pursue my wider business and writing interests, while continuing to advocate the UK’s global trade ambitions."
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