Philip Hammond refuses to say if Chequers Brexit plan will leave UK economy better off
3 min read
Philip Hammond has refused to say whether Theresa May's flagship Brexit plan will improve or worsen the state of the British economy.
The Chancellor has previously warned that leaving the European Union without a deal could hit the public finances to the tune of £80bn.
However, no public assessment has yet been made of the likely impact of a Brexit deal modelled along the lines of Mrs May's Chequers proposals, which have sparked fury among Eurosceptics who believe they leave the UK too closely tied to the EU.
Speaking on the Andrew Marr show today, the Chancellor promised that MPs would be given "the relevant information" ahead of a Commons vote on any deal with Brussels.
But he twice ducked the question of whether a Chequers-style deal would harm the economy overall - saying only that it would "minimise" the negative effects of quitting the bloc.
Asked if Chequers would leave the economy "worse off", Mr Hammond said: "Getting a deal that allows us to continue trading with our European neighbours with low friction at the borders and low friction behind the borders will minimise any negative effect on the UK."
Pressed again, Mr Hammond replied: "It will minimise any negative effect. Now whether, there is overall a negative effect or a positive effect I can't say. That'll be for the modelling in due course to show."
Labour MP Jo Stevens, a supporter of the People's Vote campaign for a second Brexit referendum, quickly leapt on the exchange.
She said: "With little more than 24 hours to the Budget the Chancellor was unable or unwilling to answer the most basic question about his Government’s economic policy: will its proposed Chequers car crash deal leave people worse off?
“Chequers car crash or no deal catastrophe it is very clear that the Brexit being dumped on Britain will be miserable for our nation’s finances."
'MODELLING IS ONGOING'
Earlier this month MPs on the powerful cross-party Treasury Committee called on the Bank of England to carry out a "full and frank" analysis of the impact of Brexit before the Commons has a say on Mrs May's final deal, in a bid to ensure MPs vote with their "eyes wide open".
The Committee is pushing for the central bank and the Financial Conduct Authority to analyse any deal Mrs May strikes with the EU, as well as the impact of leaving the bloc without an agreement.
Mr Hammond today said the Treasury itself was engaged in "all sorts of internal work" on the economic impact of different forms of Brexit.
But he said this analysis would not be published while the UK was "engaged in a negotiation".
"That gives rather a lot of information away to the other side," the Chancellor said.
Mr Hammond added: "That modelling work is ongoing and we've made a commitment that when we come to Parliament with a deal for a meaningful vote we will publish the relevant information that Parliament will need to see to understand the deal - and that will include modelling the deal itself."
The top Cabinet minister also warned today that he would be forced to ditch the plans in his upcoming Budget if Britain leaves the European Union without a deal.
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