The UK is a 'vassal state' - Rees-Mogg and David Davis go to war over Brexit
A top Tory Brexiteer has torn into Brexit Secretary David Davis in an unprecedented move which could have huge implications for the government.
Increasingly popular among Tory members, MP Jacob Rees-Mogg is tipped to be the next leader of the embattled Tories and has garnered serious support from across the country as he pushes Downing Street to live up to its promises.
Now, he has launched a scathing verbal assault on Davis – breaking from the Tory pretense that everything in the Brexit negotiations is in hand.
Rees-Mogg raged over the government planning to accept EU rules like unlimited migration and European Court of Justice (ECJ) control until the UK officially leaves the bloc in March 2019.
The European Research Group of Conservative MPs accused Davis of letting the UK down by refusing to uphold the result of the referendum.
Rees-Mogg said: “We are lackeys of the European Union. Can’t we bit a bolder and implement the referendum result?
“We are leaving, we don’t need to behave as if we are a permanent member.” Calling the country a “vassal state” of Brussels, Rees-Mogg insisted the government take a harder line.
“If on March 30, 2019 the UK is subject to the European Court of Justice, takes new rules relating to the Single Market and is paying into the European budget, are we not a vassal state?” he said.
“Today we have a vote, we have a representative on the Court of Justice, we have representatives in the European Parliament.”
Under the plans drawn up by Downing Street, much of which is being kept secret, the nation will stay under EU rule for two years in a “transition split” as parts of the agreement are slowly unraveled.
Rees-Mogg was furious over the prospect.
“Allowing continued Court of Justice jurisdiction, it’s hard to think of any precedent anywhere in the world where an independent nation has taken the judgements of a foreign court as its superior and immediate law without having any judge on that court,” he said.
Davis insisted his back-bench colleague was wrong. “Firstly we will not be members of the union, we will be replicating to a very large extent the operations of the Single Market and Customs Union in order to make sure there is a single change, from the point of view of businesses in particular."
“We will not be subject to the duty of sincere cooperation, which is what stops us arriving at trade deals now, negotiating and signing trade deals now, so that freedom will exist.”
Davis said as it leaves the EU, Britain will be “transitioning” despite Prime Minister Theresa May saying the opposite.
Rees-Mogg replied: “Transition means we are de-facto inside the European Union for that period, we are only actually out at the end of the transition.
“That is a big shift in Government policy and a big move away from the vote in June 2016.”
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