Conduct of negotiations

Part of European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill – in the House of Commons at 4:30 pm on 8 February 2017.

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Photo of Caroline Lucas Caroline Lucas Co-Leader of the Green Party 4:30, 8 February 2017

I am not going to pick out any one particular party for filibustering. I am afraid that it is an epidemic that affects this whole place, and I would love to see it end. I do, however, want to talk about precisely that kind of evidence that the Environmental Audit Committee heard.

One almost believes that it is precisely the complexity demonstrated when evidence is given about the environmental impacts of Brexit that explains why Conservative Members do not want to hear about it. Such complexity underlines to them that this Brexit process is not going to be done and dusted in two years. The idea that we will have a whole new trade agreement in two years is cloud cuckoo land; anybody with any knowledge of this issue would certainly say that now.