Liam Fox says he’ll QUIT the Cabinet if Theresa May ends up keeping Britain tied to EU customs union
The House of Lords voted last night to take the final control of negotiations away from Theresa May
LIAM Fox today warned Theresa May he'd quit as Trade Secretary if she tried to keep Britain tied to the customs union after Brexit.
The minister also warned peers not to “thwart the view of the British people” after the House of Lords voted to tie the Government’s hands on Brexit.
Last night Lords backed an amendment to the key EU Withdrawal Bill which would block Theresa May from having the final say in negotiations with Brussels.
If the amendment is confirmed by the Commons, it will mean the PM can no longer threaten to crash out of the EU without a deal - weakening her hand in trade talks.
Instead, MPs would have the power to dictate the terms of Brexit to the Government, potentially including an order to stay in the EU altogether.
The defeat for the PM has raised the prospect that she may end up backing down and agreeing to keep the UK in the customs union after we quit the EU.
But Dr Fox insisted that would be unacceptable, telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I don't think we can stay in the customs union for a number of reasons, the main reason being that we would be in a worse position than we are today.
"If we were in a customs union with the European Union we would have to accept what the EU negotiated in terms of market access to the UK without the UK having a voice.
"I don't think there is a customs union that could ever be acceptable."
Asked if he would resign in the event of a U-turn by Mrs May, he said: "Getting no answer, you can draw your own inferences."
The Prime Minister's spokesman today vowed to present a “robust” response to the vote, saying the Lords “risked tying the Government's hands behind its back in negotiations with Brussels”.
Dr Fox told the BBC: “The EU Withdrawal Bill is ensuring that we leave the EU in a smooth and orderly way, it’s not a mechanism for overturning the referendum.
“What we want is to have a negotiation that comes to a suitable conclusion, then we will give Parliament a say on whether they accept it or not.
“This is a backdoor mechanism in my view of trying to block the will of the people.”
The pro-Brexit minister added: “When we’ve taken a decision we follow it through - this idea that if you don’t like the result you can keep putting it off and have another one, I don’t think it will wash with the British public.
“I think there is quite a big debate now about whether the un-elected House can actually thwart the view of the British electorate in a referendum.”
But Jeremy Corbyn backed the peers, saying today: "I think Parliament should have the final say on the terms of leaving the European Union.
“If we don't accept the decisions that the Government has made then they should be sent back to negotiate again.”
Leading Eurosceptic Jacob Rees-Mogg tweeted last night: “Labour and LibDem peers vote to give themselves a veto on Brexit. What about democracy? #PeersagainstthePeople”.
Under the Government’s plans, Parliament will have the chance to vote on the eventual Brexit trade deal we strike with the EU - but if they defeat it, we will crash out with no deal.
But if the Lords amendment is confirmed by MPs, Parliament will instead be able to instruct Mrs May to pursue an alternative path - including delaying or even overturning the Brexit process.
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During last night’s fiery debate, pro-EU peers compared the Government to the Nazis while other Lords mocked them as “a cosy cabal of Remain”.
Another amendment, calling for a second referendum on Brexit, was narrowly defeated - but Labour shadow minister Lord Hunt defied his party by supporting the vote.
Jeremy Corbyn hauled him in a dressing-down but decided against sacking the peer, despite him opposing Labour’s official policy.
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