Today the Select Committee on Exiting the European Union on which Seema Malhotra MP sits published an important report on the Government’s white paper.

Seema Malhotra MP commented: “The report suggests that the Government’s claim that “no deal is better than a bad deal” is unsubstantiated as no economic assessment has been done.  Without an economic assessment of ‘no deal’ having been done and without evidence that steps are being taken to mitigate what would be the damaging effect of such an outcome, Parliament will not be in a position to make a meaningful assessment about whether the deal being developed is genuinely better than “no deal”. The Select Committee notes that the Prime Minister has said that the government has prepared for all scenarios, but it has yet to publish a thorough assessment of what the implications would mean to vital sectors of the UK economy if they failed to reach a comprehensive trade agreement with the EU. The negotiating period is only two years and all have to work together led by the Government to secure the best possible deal based on key principles of prosperity and security.”

The report is based on evidence from witnesses, including the Brexit Secretary, David Davis and Sir Ivan Rogers, the former British Permanent Representative to the European Union. You can read the report here.