BREXIT BOOST: General Election will give Theresa May licence for smooth exit, experts say
LEADING businessmen say the General Election could give Theresa May the opportunity to deliver a smoother Brexit deal.
Business chiefs say the General Election could give Theresa May licence for a smooth Brexit
Amid fears the UK could crash out of the EU in 2019 without securing a trade deal, business chiefs say the election could give Theresa May a stronger hand in negotiations.
With the latest polls predicting a Tory win on June 8 and assuming another general election will not take place until 2022, businesses hope Mrs May will have more flexibility to negotiate a free trade deal with the bloc.
Rather than preparing for an election as the crucial negotiations hit their final stages, Mrs May will be free to thrash out a trade deal with Brussels.
The new election and the timeline for a new parliament could give the prime minister breathing room to deliver a smoother exit deal
Adam Marshall, director-general of British Chambers of Commerce, told the FT: “The new election and the timeline for a new parliament could give the prime minister breathing room to deliver a smoother exit deal.”
Josh Hardie, deputy director-general of the CBI employers’ organisation said: “If it does lead to a government with a clear mandate and an ability to move more quickly through the process, the long-term gain should be a simpler approach, and that could improve the chances of not having the cliff edge.”
Blair: All options should be on the table for Brexit
The Prime Minister has been urged to secure a trade deal before Britain leaves the EU after she declared earlier this year that “no deal” would be better than a bad deal.
Yesterday, Mrs May reaffirmed her position that she would be prepared to walk away from talks without a deal if she did not like what was on offer from Brussels.
She told ITV: “I wouldn't have said it if I didn't believe that.
Theresa May, pictured with EU chief Jean-Claude Juncker, insists "no deal" is better than a bad one
Theresa May has been hitting the campaign trail ahead of the General Election on June 8
“What I also believe is that, with the right strong hand in negotiations, we can get a good deal for the UK."
But she added she “did not want to see a cliff edge where suddenly nobody knows one minute after midnight on the appointed day what the situation is”.
The CBI has warned if Britain leaves the EU without securing a trade deal businesses on both sides of the new UK-EU frontier would be damaged.
The EU27 have agreed their negotiating guidelines
Mrs May has been told to “wake up” and realise that Britain is moving towards a “chaotic Brexit” after EU leaders agreed there can be no parallel exit and trade talks.
At a crunch European Council summit in Brussels, leaders of the other 27 EU countries agreed their negotiating guidelines and insisted talks must take a "phased" approach.
Before trade talks can start, the EU says the rights of EU citizens in the UK and British expats in Europe, the disputed divorce bill - estimated at a potential £50 billion - and how to maintain a free-flowing Irish border are the key "phase one" issues to be resolved.