UK Edition
Time for MPs to grasp the nettle and unite behind a 'Common Market 2.0' Brexit
The UK is a great country with a proud history. Yet, one thing most will probably agree on, we aren’t exactly covering ourselves in glory. The public feel alarmed at the seeming mess we have got ourselves into with Brexit. Many are fed up to the back teeth of hearing about all the endless ‘Groundhog Day’ twists and turns and permutations what might or might not happen. It’s getting worse, not better, as we head towards the exit door without any agreement over a deliverable plan.
That is why MPs from all parties are reaching the conclusion that we need to put aside tribal, political differences and accept every option carries risks. No one outcome is anyone’s ideal. It is for this reason, we have come together to argue for a Brexit deal that delivers the result of the 2016 referendum and protects the economic interests of working people in constituencies across the country from Manchester to Harlow.
Our plan is that after the transition, in December 2020, the UK should join a new Common Market for the twenty-first century.
Common Market 2.0 builds on what people originally supported when we joined the original European Economic Community in 1973. Through now joining European Free Trade Association (EFTA), we end the jurisdiction of the ECJ, and take the UK out of political union. EFTA respects the will of national Parliaments.
It ensures our farmers and fishermen take back control, as Britain would no longer be a member of the Common Agricultural Policy or the Common Fisheries Policy. It means control over our immigration policy by providing the power to act against free movement in certain circumstances when the Government deems necessary. The UK would have the power under Article 112 of the EEA Agreement to take ‘Safeguarding Measures’. This ‘safeguarding clause’ allows an EEA EFTA state to unilaterally take ‘appropriate measures’ in the event of ‘serious economic, societal or
environmental difficulties of a sectoral or regional nature liable to persist’. This means that if immigration reached extreme levels, we would have the power to impose restrictions. Moreover, the Government could use existing rules in which EEA nationals in other EEA countries need to be in work or have sufficient means to support themselves. If they do not, their right to reside in the UK could be revoked.
For working people, Common Market 2.0 means more control over how we spend taxpayers’ money for public services -simply because our EU financial contributions would be much lower and we could choose how to spend our own money.
In terms of social justice for workers, Common Market 2.0 safeguards jobs, by offering real frictionless trade through full access to the Single Market and a new customs union, guarantees workers rights and does not in any way constrain state aid. It could help with the cost of living too, as it takes back control of budgetary contributions from the EU and removes the VAT element.
Our Union would no longer be undermined - as it would eliminate the need for the Irish backstop ever to be activated - and provides a seamless transition from the transition period to Common Market 2.0.
It is time to be bold, Now is the time for the Parliament and the people to grasp the nettle and unite around the proposal to guarantee a fair and prosperous future for the UK outside the EU in a Common Market 2.0.