The Prime
Minister Theresa May spoke and did a Q+A in the House of Commons on last
week's European Council that she attended in Brussels.
In her
statement, Mrs May touched upon the discussions she had engaged in with her 27
European counterparts. She began by noting the agreed requirement for a robust
European stance in the face of Russian aggression, Russia’s “indiscriminate”
bombing of civilians in Aleppo, and the additional atrocities that are
occurring in Syria which she described as “utterly horrific”. The Prime
Minister also spoke about how the leaders at the European Council agreed that
addressing the root causes of mass migration and a focus on championing free
trade around the world were the key mutual priorities for our nations.
At the end as Mrs May discussed what she had
told the European Council when updating her counterparts on our position on
Brexit:
“I made clear
at last week’s European Council that my aim is to cement Britain as a close
partner of the EU once we have left. I want the deal
we negotiate to reflect the kind of mature, co-operative relationship that
close friends and allies enjoy.
A deal that
will give British companies the maximum freedom to trade with and operate in
the European market – and allow European businesses to do the same here. A deal that
will deliver the deepest possible co-operation to ensure our national security
and the security of our allies. A deal that is
in Britain’s interests – and the interests of all our European partners. But it will
also be a deal that means we are a fully independent, sovereign nation – able
to do what sovereign nations do, which means we will, for example, be free to
decide for ourselves how we control immigration.
It will mean
our laws are made not in Brussels but here in this Parliament. And that the
judges interpreting those laws will sit not in Luxembourg but in courts right
here in Britain.”
You can read
Theresa May’s entire statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-commons-statement-on-the-european-council-24-oct-2016