After weeks of uncertainty, and accusations that the Government hasn't the faintest idea of how to handle Brexit, Theresa May yesterday showed us that she knows exactly where we are going...
STEPHEN GLOVER: Praise be! How sweet it is to hear a PM honour the will of the British people
Theresa May, 60, was speaking on day one of the Tory Party conference
And the Prime Minister showed she knew exactly where Britain is going
Mrs May said she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March
By Stephen Glover for the Daily Mail
3 October 2016
After weeks of uncertainty, and accusations that the Government hasn't the faintest idea of how to handle Brexit, Theresa May yesterday showed us that she knows exactly where we are going.
Sunday October 2 2016 will go down as a momentous day in British history — a day when it finally became clear that this country really is turning its back on the European Union, and embracing a new destiny.
First there was the announcement that the Government will repeal the 1972 European Communities Act, which has given European Union law supremacy in Great Britain. It already seems almost inconceivable that we should have ever submitted to such a state of affairs.
In Mrs May's words, the Great Repeal Bill 'marks the first stage in the UK becoming a sovereign and independent country once again. It will return power and authority to the elected institutions of our country. It means that the authority of EU law in Britain will end'. These are profoundly moving sentiments.
Prime Minister Theresa May, who celebrated her 60th birthday on Saturday, exactly 100 days since Britain voted to leave the EU, was speaking on day one of the Tory Party conference
During the speech Mrs May said she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March
It's true the Bill won't become law until we leave the EU. But its announcement is irrevocable proof that the will of the British people, who voted by a clear majority on June 23 to leave the EU, will be honoured.
Moreover, the date of our leaving can now be put in our diaries. Mrs May confirmed in her short but stirring speech to the Tory Party Conference in Birmingham that she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March. This means we will be out of the EU by April 2019 at the very latest.
So that engaging, bleary old Euro-fanatic Kenneth Clarke should think again. Only yesterday the veteran doom-monger was prophesying that extracting ourselves completely from the EU would take eight years. He'll never admit he's wrong.
Perhaps most significant of all of yesterday's historic developments was Mrs May's unequivocal undertaking that any deal with the EU would give us complete control of our borders. She said on BBC1's Andrew Marr Show that the British people had sent a 'clear message' on bringing down immigration, and she 'will deliver on that'.
There can be no going back on this commitment. The die is cast. We can now forget talk about 'hard' or 'soft' Brexit. Whatever agreement is struck with the EU, it will include our right to decide how many EU citizens come to this country to live and work.
In other words, the issue of whether or not an independent Britain is part of the EU single market is secondary, though obviously important. Mrs May has drawn a line in the sand beyond which she will not go. This country will control its own borders.
It would be hard to exaggerate just how revolutionary a development this is. At last a major British politician — our Prime Minister, no less — has grasped a truth which has eluded other British leaders who have been too evasive or bone-headed to heed public opinion.
One thinks of the shambling figure of Jeremy Corbyn, who at last week's Labour Party Conference stubbornly refused to concede that immigration was too high, or that anything whatsoever should be done to bring it down. This dopey old dinosaur doesn't get it, and never will.
Theresa May (pictured) yesterday showed us that she knows exactly where we are going, writes Stephen Glover
In a more generous spirit, one thinks of David Cameron, who in the months leading up to the referendum shuttled around Europe with his begging bowl, pleading for concessions on immigration which were never offered except in the most derisory form. If he had understood how deeply millions of British people felt on the matter, he wouldn't have accepted the EU's paltry deal.
Theresa May does get it. In her speech yesterday, she invoked an independent, outward-looking Britain on friendly terms with our EU neighbours but no longer beholden to them — 'a Britain in which we pass our own laws and govern ourselves'. This was inspiring stuff.
In front of the party faithful, on the Andrew Marr Show, and in an interview in The Sunday Times, Mrs May came across as resolute, confident and remarkably clear-thinking.
But for all the euphoria, we should not for a moment imagine that the best-laid plans of the Prime Minister and the 'Brexiteers' will now carry on regardless. There will be sniping and opposition, not least from within Tory ranks.
Nicky Morgan — a very mediocre Cabinet minister, justly sacked by Theresa May — warned yesterday that a 'hard Brexit' risked encouraging bigoted attitudes like those of Donald Trump. The comparison is odious. Why is wishing to control our borders evidence of extremism?
Tory Remainer Anna Soubry
Another disappointed Tory ex-minister, Anna Soubry, doesn't think Article 50 should be triggered before French elections next May, and the German elections, which will almost certainly be in September. But why should we wait when we don't know how, or if, the respective outcomes will affect Brexit?
Like most intransigent Remainers, Anna Soubry is inherently pessimistic. She asserts that leaving the EU is bound to be bad for Britain. 'We don't hold the cards, the EU does,' she declared yesterday. But how can this be if European Union exports to Britain are greater than ours to the EU?
The truth is that some Remainers refuse to accept the outcome of the referendum, and one of their ploys is to try to draw out the process of our withdrawal for as long as possible in the hope that something will come up which may justify calling another vote.
Theresa May and her husband Philip arrive at the annual Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham
Such is the goal of a desperate rump of Tories, many Labour moderates, the Scottish Nationalists and what is left of the Liberal Democrats. They will harry Theresa May at every opportunity, and their stratagems will doubtless be given maximum publicity by the BBC.
Will they succeed? It is clear from what the Prime Minister said yesterday that the Government is going to trigger Article 50 without any parliamentary debate as it surely has every right to do in view of the democratic outcome of the referendum. Parliament voted by an overwhelming majority in favour of a plebiscite, and is morally obliged to accept the result.
But the Government will have to submit the Great Repeal Bill to Parliament, and here there could be trouble, given Theresa May's slim majority, as diehard Remainers try to overturn the decision of the British people by using every specious argument imaginable.
After her performance yesterday, I am much more optimistic that right will prevail. Mrs May correctly said that the Great Repeal Bill naturally follows the outcome of the referendum. As a majority voted in favour of leaving, so there must be a bill to put that decision into effect.
She has wisely positioned herself as the champion of the democratically expressed will of the people. How can her adversaries argue against that? Well, they will of course, by using every trick possible, and we mustn't think this is going to be easy.
My strong belief, though, is that most voters, including many Remainers, will be on her side because she (a Remainer during the referendum campaign) is on the side of democracy.
Mrs May told The Sunday Times she did not want an election before 2020 for fear of causing 'instability', but it is possible she will find herself going to the country before then, defending the principle that the outcome of the referendum must be respected.
However bumpy the path ahead, I feel certain after Theresa May's measured determination yesterday that there is no going back now.
Britain is going to be an independent country again, making its own laws, controlling its own borders and, I have little doubt, prospering in the world as never before.
They are words I have waited a long time to write, and they could scarcely sound sweeter. Praise be!
Read more: STEPHEN GLOVER: Praise be! How sweet it is to hear a PM honour the will of the British people | Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
STEPHEN GLOVER: Praise be! How sweet it is to hear a PM honour the will of the British people
Theresa May, 60, was speaking on day one of the Tory Party conference
And the Prime Minister showed she knew exactly where Britain is going
Mrs May said she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March
By Stephen Glover for the Daily Mail
3 October 2016
After weeks of uncertainty, and accusations that the Government hasn't the faintest idea of how to handle Brexit, Theresa May yesterday showed us that she knows exactly where we are going.
Sunday October 2 2016 will go down as a momentous day in British history — a day when it finally became clear that this country really is turning its back on the European Union, and embracing a new destiny.
First there was the announcement that the Government will repeal the 1972 European Communities Act, which has given European Union law supremacy in Great Britain. It already seems almost inconceivable that we should have ever submitted to such a state of affairs.
In Mrs May's words, the Great Repeal Bill 'marks the first stage in the UK becoming a sovereign and independent country once again. It will return power and authority to the elected institutions of our country. It means that the authority of EU law in Britain will end'. These are profoundly moving sentiments.
Prime Minister Theresa May, who celebrated her 60th birthday on Saturday, exactly 100 days since Britain voted to leave the EU, was speaking on day one of the Tory Party conference
During the speech Mrs May said she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March
It's true the Bill won't become law until we leave the EU. But its announcement is irrevocable proof that the will of the British people, who voted by a clear majority on June 23 to leave the EU, will be honoured.
Moreover, the date of our leaving can now be put in our diaries. Mrs May confirmed in her short but stirring speech to the Tory Party Conference in Birmingham that she will trigger Article 50 before the end of next March. This means we will be out of the EU by April 2019 at the very latest.
So that engaging, bleary old Euro-fanatic Kenneth Clarke should think again. Only yesterday the veteran doom-monger was prophesying that extracting ourselves completely from the EU would take eight years. He'll never admit he's wrong.
Perhaps most significant of all of yesterday's historic developments was Mrs May's unequivocal undertaking that any deal with the EU would give us complete control of our borders. She said on BBC1's Andrew Marr Show that the British people had sent a 'clear message' on bringing down immigration, and she 'will deliver on that'.
There can be no going back on this commitment. The die is cast. We can now forget talk about 'hard' or 'soft' Brexit. Whatever agreement is struck with the EU, it will include our right to decide how many EU citizens come to this country to live and work.
In other words, the issue of whether or not an independent Britain is part of the EU single market is secondary, though obviously important. Mrs May has drawn a line in the sand beyond which she will not go. This country will control its own borders.
It would be hard to exaggerate just how revolutionary a development this is. At last a major British politician — our Prime Minister, no less — has grasped a truth which has eluded other British leaders who have been too evasive or bone-headed to heed public opinion.
One thinks of the shambling figure of Jeremy Corbyn, who at last week's Labour Party Conference stubbornly refused to concede that immigration was too high, or that anything whatsoever should be done to bring it down. This dopey old dinosaur doesn't get it, and never will.
Theresa May (pictured) yesterday showed us that she knows exactly where we are going, writes Stephen Glover
In a more generous spirit, one thinks of David Cameron, who in the months leading up to the referendum shuttled around Europe with his begging bowl, pleading for concessions on immigration which were never offered except in the most derisory form. If he had understood how deeply millions of British people felt on the matter, he wouldn't have accepted the EU's paltry deal.
Theresa May does get it. In her speech yesterday, she invoked an independent, outward-looking Britain on friendly terms with our EU neighbours but no longer beholden to them — 'a Britain in which we pass our own laws and govern ourselves'. This was inspiring stuff.
In front of the party faithful, on the Andrew Marr Show, and in an interview in The Sunday Times, Mrs May came across as resolute, confident and remarkably clear-thinking.
But for all the euphoria, we should not for a moment imagine that the best-laid plans of the Prime Minister and the 'Brexiteers' will now carry on regardless. There will be sniping and opposition, not least from within Tory ranks.
Nicky Morgan — a very mediocre Cabinet minister, justly sacked by Theresa May — warned yesterday that a 'hard Brexit' risked encouraging bigoted attitudes like those of Donald Trump. The comparison is odious. Why is wishing to control our borders evidence of extremism?
Tory Remainer Anna Soubry
Another disappointed Tory ex-minister, Anna Soubry, doesn't think Article 50 should be triggered before French elections next May, and the German elections, which will almost certainly be in September. But why should we wait when we don't know how, or if, the respective outcomes will affect Brexit?
Like most intransigent Remainers, Anna Soubry is inherently pessimistic. She asserts that leaving the EU is bound to be bad for Britain. 'We don't hold the cards, the EU does,' she declared yesterday. But how can this be if European Union exports to Britain are greater than ours to the EU?
The truth is that some Remainers refuse to accept the outcome of the referendum, and one of their ploys is to try to draw out the process of our withdrawal for as long as possible in the hope that something will come up which may justify calling another vote.
Theresa May and her husband Philip arrive at the annual Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham
Such is the goal of a desperate rump of Tories, many Labour moderates, the Scottish Nationalists and what is left of the Liberal Democrats. They will harry Theresa May at every opportunity, and their stratagems will doubtless be given maximum publicity by the BBC.
Will they succeed? It is clear from what the Prime Minister said yesterday that the Government is going to trigger Article 50 without any parliamentary debate as it surely has every right to do in view of the democratic outcome of the referendum. Parliament voted by an overwhelming majority in favour of a plebiscite, and is morally obliged to accept the result.
But the Government will have to submit the Great Repeal Bill to Parliament, and here there could be trouble, given Theresa May's slim majority, as diehard Remainers try to overturn the decision of the British people by using every specious argument imaginable.
After her performance yesterday, I am much more optimistic that right will prevail. Mrs May correctly said that the Great Repeal Bill naturally follows the outcome of the referendum. As a majority voted in favour of leaving, so there must be a bill to put that decision into effect.
She has wisely positioned herself as the champion of the democratically expressed will of the people. How can her adversaries argue against that? Well, they will of course, by using every trick possible, and we mustn't think this is going to be easy.
My strong belief, though, is that most voters, including many Remainers, will be on her side because she (a Remainer during the referendum campaign) is on the side of democracy.
Mrs May told The Sunday Times she did not want an election before 2020 for fear of causing 'instability', but it is possible she will find herself going to the country before then, defending the principle that the outcome of the referendum must be respected.
However bumpy the path ahead, I feel certain after Theresa May's measured determination yesterday that there is no going back now.
Britain is going to be an independent country again, making its own laws, controlling its own borders and, I have little doubt, prospering in the world as never before.
They are words I have waited a long time to write, and they could scarcely sound sweeter. Praise be!
Read more: STEPHEN GLOVER: Praise be! How sweet it is to hear a PM honour the will of the British people | Daily Mail Online
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