Brexit Secretary Says Red Tape Will Not Be Slashed After UK Leaves EU

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 05: European Chief Negotiator for the United Kingdom Exiting th
Leon Neal/Getty Images
Liam Deacon

The UK will not take advantage of Brexit to cut back environmental and workplace red tape, ministers claim in an effort to reassure those arguing Brexit is harmful.

David Davis, the Brexit Secretary, promised the UK will not become a “Mad Max-style dystopian” economy after some Brexit supporters urged the nation to kickstart growth by deregulating like Singapore once independent.

Instead, Britain will work with the European Union (EU) in a “race to the top”, creating some of the strictest rules and standards of regulation anywhere in the world, Mr. Davis confirmed in a speech in the Austrian capital of Vienna on Tuesday.

Ministers have previously said the UK could adopt a different “economic model” if it were unable to secure a satisfactory deal with the remaining 27 member states.

The government has even reportedly threatened to start a trade war with the bloc by raising tariffs on their goods if negotiators refuse to cooperate in trade talks.

Mr. Davis struck a very different tone Tuesday. “They fear that Brexit could lead to an Anglo-Saxon race to the bottom,” he said, according to the BBC.

“With Britain plunged into a Mad Max-style world borrowed from dystopian fiction. These fears about a race to the bottom are based on nothing, not history, not intention, nor interest.

“But while I profoundly disagree with them – It does remind us all that we must provide reassurance.”

Mr. Davis also reaffirmed the Prime Minister’s guarantee of protecting migrant rights, Chancellor Philip Hammond’s support for remaining tied to the European banking system, and Environment Secretary Michael Gove’s promise to increase environmental regulation.

“Such mutual recognition will naturally require close, even-handed co-operation between these authorities and a common set of principles to guide them,” he added.

“This will be a crucial part of ensuring our future economic partnership is as open and trade remains as frictionless as possible.

“I am certain that is in the interests of both sides and, because of that, I am certain that we can get this right.”

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