‘Canada hasn't paid anything!’ Andrew Neil makes BRILLIANT point over Brexit bill demands
BROADCASTER Andrew Neil destroyed claims that Britain should pay a financial settlement of up to €60bn in order to get the UK out of the European Union.
Mr Neil insisted that Canada has improved its access to the single market but did not have to pay a thing so Britain should not have to pay to trade in the single market.
Presenting on BBC This Week, Mr Neil made his point following Michel Portillo’s claim that Britain should pay to get a good deal with the EU.
Former Tory MP Michael Portillo insisted the Brexit financial settlement doesn’t matter. He said: “Brexiteers are getting very worried about the money. In the end, there is something worth buying.
“There are two things worth buying, one is the return of parliamentary democracy and accountability to Britain and the other is access to the single market.
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“I think the price for those two might be very high because they are really worth having.”
But Mr Neil hit back at the claim and said: “Who else pays for access to the single market?”
Mr Portillo said: “The other pay for it buy having the jurisdiction of the ECJ, the European Court of Justice, which is not acceptable to us. Which is why I think we might have to pay.”
In response, Mr Neil said that Canada has just “massively” improved its access to the single market and it has not had to pay anything, nor has it been subject to the ECJ.
Mr Portillo said: “Whereas Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are subject to the ECJ. I’ve said this before, I think there is a deal to be done but I think it’s going to cost us a bit of money.”
EU leaders have refused to move onto trade talks until significant progress is made on the key Brexit issues - including the financial settlement, the Irish border and the
In her keynote Florence speech, Prime Minister Theresa May said the divorce bill will cost two more years of EU contribution, which is around €20bn. But European Union officials have suggested a much larger figure, speculated to be around €60bn.
Following the sixth round of negotiations, the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier has given Britain a two-week deadline to put forward its Brexit financial settlement in order to move onto trade talks by December.
