‘Stop HARKING ON’ Hammond DESTROYS Remoaner dreams to reverse Brexit
PHILIP Hammond demanded more “enthusiasm” from Europe as he turned on the anti-Brexit brigade, telling them to “stop harking on” about Britain remaining in the EU because it amounts to nothing more than an “illusion”.
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Until now, the Chancellor had proved to be one of Prime Minister Theresa May’s incorrigible Cabinet ministers who sought to undermine the prospect of Britain getting the best out of leaving the European Union.
But Mr Hammond threw his support behind Mrs May’s Brexit ambitions, accusing European leaders of making “only backward-looking” statements such as, “are you sure you want to leave?”
He also exposed the growing cracks in the superstate, warning Brussels it should do more to keep existing members rather than “threatening members who decide to leave”.
During a visit to Berlin, he described EU fears that a generous Brexit deal for the UK could encourage other countries to leave the trading bloc as “paranoia”.
We hear from Europe only backward-looking stuff
In an interview with the Welt Am Sonntag newspaper published yesterday, Mr Hammond slammed European leaders for remaining focused on whether Britain could have a future inside the EU - insisting instead, they should be looking to the “future”.
He said: "We hear a willingness and enthusiasm in the USA and from many other countries around the world to make new trade deals with us. But we don’t hear that from Europe.
"We hear from Europe only backward-looking stuff. 'Are you sure you want to leave?' Or 'It’s a bad decision to leave.' Or 'You must be punished for deciding to leave.'
“Well, we are leaving and we want to retain the closest possible partnership with the European Union. But we can only have that if the European Union also wants it."
Asked how her would respond to people who “do not want to abandon hope” of the UK remaining in the EU, he said: "I would advise those people who value a close relationship between the UK and Europe to stop harking on about this illusion.
"We should focus instead on the new relationship and ensure that the UK and Europe continue to work closely together in the future.
"Those of us who campaigned against Brexit before the referendum have moved on.
"We are now entirely focussed on trying to get the best future partnership with the EU. That’s where the future lies."
Responding to the interviewer’s suggestion that a so-called soft Brexit - in which the UK maintains to be under judicial, political and economical rule - might spark countries to leave, Mr Hammond said: “I can understand that paranoia. But imagine you are running a successful, thriving club. If one member leaves, you don’t immediately panic that all the other members might leave, but are confident they will want to remain.
"You cannot really run a club if you are constantly threatening members who decide to leave. You should rather re-double your efforts to remain attractive for new and existing members."
Mr Hammond used the trip to Germany to stress the need for the UK’s vast financial services sector to be part of the talks on future trade ties, after Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, ruled that out.
Asked what the UK had to offer in return to the EU, he said it would be “crazy” for Europe to cut itself off from the City of London.
He said: "We are world market leaders in financial, legal and other high-quality services and play a hugely important role in the competitiveness of European business.
"Every time European firms raise capital through the City of London and do so more cheaply than they could raise it elsewhere in Europe, that makes those businesses that little bit more competitive."