Jeremy Corbyn has today published a confidential Government report which he claims shows the “cold hard evidence” of the harm Boris Johnson’s Brexit plan would do to the country.
Labour’s leader held the document aloft at a press conference today in the second such bombshell leak of a confidential document in two weeks.
The first was a cache of nearly 500 pages which detailed trade talks between the US and UK.
Labour say today’s document was produced by the Treasury to advise the Prime Minister on his own deal, outlining the reality of the Irish border after Brexit – and the impact changes would have on the whole of the UK.
Mr Corbyn said said the document proved Boris Johnson was misleading the public about his “oven ready” Brexit deal – and wanted the public to “vote blindly”.
Boris Johnson has insisted the UK, including Northern Ireland, will leave the EU “whole and entire” after Brexit.
(Image: REUTERS)
But Mr Corbyn claimed the report shows the Brexit deal will “separate Northern Ireland in practice from whole swathes of the UK’s internal market.”
“This is cold hard evidence that categorically shows the impact a damaging Brexit deal would have on large parts of our country,” he said.
“This drives a coach and horses through the Prime Minister’s claim there will be no border in the Irish Sea. It’s simply not true.”
The 15-page document appeared to be a slideshow prepared by the Treasury and is titled “NI Protocol: Unfettered Access To The UKIM” (UK internal market).
Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer said: “I’ve always been a fan of evidence, and this document is significant because it’s a Treasury document. This is the advice given to the Prime Minister about his own deal.
“It’s not coming from us, it’s coming from the Government.”
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Mr Corbyn said: “What else are they hiding? What else will they sell you out on?”
Mr Corbyn said Johnson’s promise to “get Brexit done” was a “fraud on the British people” leading to “Years of more painful negotiations and broken promises”.
Mr Johnson had said there would be no checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain under his exit terms.
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The Labour leader said page five of the document states: “There will be customs declarations and security checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.”
He added: “It is there in black and white. It says there will be customs declarations, absolutely clearly, for trade going from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.
“The Government cannot rule out regulatory checks, rules of origin checks, and animal and public health checks also.
“For trade going the other way, from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, there will be all of the above plus potentially damaging tariffs.”
Under the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal, Northern Ireland will share customs rules with the rest of the UK.
But when goods move into Northern Ireland across the Irish Sea from the rest of the UK, EU customs rules will apply to them – if they’re deemed “at risk” of moving into the EU later on.
That means firms moving goods west from Britain to Northern Ireland will have to fill out two customs forms.
And already-public Government documents say this will lead to “additional administrative costs” on goods moving from east to west – estimated at around £15 to £56 per customs declaration.
Separately, under single market rules, firms will also face fees of at least 55 Euros (£47) at border inspection posts when sending “products of animal origin” from Britain to Northern Ireland, government documents say.
As for goods moving from west to east – from Northern Ireland to GB – Johnson has repeatedly said there will be no checks at all.
But there is conflicting information as his own Brexit Secretary has previously told MPs: “Exit summary declarations will be required in terms of NI to GB.”
