Edging to Brexit victory: Boris Johnson 'gains ground over regulatory future of EU'
BORIS Johnson has suggested he is “gaining ground” in the Cabinet dispute over what Britain’s approach to regulations of the European Union should be post-Brexit.
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The Foreign Secretary is believed to be part of a group of senior ministers pushing to cut Brussels red tape whilst others such as Chancellor Philip Hammond seek to avoid taking steps which may limit access to the EU single market.
Theresa May has not publicly made it clear which side she will come down on.
Speaking during a visit to Moscow, Mr Johnson said: "I think that the argument is gaining ground that it would be madness to leave the EU without taking back control of our regulatory freedoms."
His words have come after the US has made it clear that signing up to observe EU regulations on issues such as data protection, animal welfare and food standards after Brexit could limit the type of trade deal that can be agreed between both countries.
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During a visit to London, US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross also warned that continued regulatory alignments between Britain and the EU could act as “land mines” to a future UK-US trade deal.
Mr Johnson added: "The world needs to move to global standards. I think the idea of regional blocs with very densely integrated legal systems - the EU is the only example of such a creation in the world at the moment.
"I think people want to see a much freer approach with global standards and individuals being able to trade more freely.
"I think that argument is gaining ground."
Brexit negotiations continue, live pictures
Fri, December 8, 2017Britain and the EU reached a historic deal on December 8 on the terms of the Brexit divorce after the British Prime Minister rushed to Brussels for early morning talks
David Davis and EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier attend a press conference by Theresa May
Mr Johnson’s intervention has come as Brexit Britain seems to be flourishing as the economy has grown by 0.4 per cent in the third quarter and by 1.7 per cent for the year compared to last year’s overall growth.
Household spending growth has helped drive the increase as well as expansion in the accounting, recruitment and retailing sectors which were all strong performers in the domestic service industry.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported manufacturers were also boosted by increasing exports and sales of new car models.
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Alan Clarke at Scotiabank had previously estimated growth to be between 1.5 per cent and 1.6 per cent has upgraded his forecast to 1.8 per cent after the figures were released.
Mr Clarke said: “If anyone had said in the immediate aftermath of the Brexit vote that the economy would only slow from 1.9 per cent in 2016 to 1.8 per cent now, we’d have been very happy with that.
“It is really quite a pleasant end to the year. The IMF got loads of headlines for downgrading their forecasts, but really they are the Johnny-come-latelies, they should have waited for this data. It is looking better than we all thought.”
