I want to assure you that I have no intention of stopping, delaying or reversing the UK's exit from the EU. The British people voted in an historic referendum in 2016 to leave the EU and enable the UK to regain its sovereignty. This is what the Government intends to deliver and it is what I will be working to achieve in Parliament.
The Prime Minister has been clear that leaving the EU means leaving the single market and the customs union. I was elected on a manifesto commitment last year to do just that. As you rightly mention, both campaigns were also clear during the referendum what a vote to leave the EU would mean.
After we leave the EU, I can also assure you that free movement will end, the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice will no longer apply and we will no longer send vast sums of money to the EU. The Government has proposed an implementation period to give companies in the UK and Europe time to adjust to new arrangements but this will be strictly time-limited to the end of 2020. A new draft Immigration Bill has been published, which will give the UK the opportunity, for the first time since freedom of movement began across Europe, to fully control who comes into the UK. We can now design an immigration policy which attracts the best and the brightest to the UK, in the sectors where we need workers.
The European Commission has predicted that 90 per cent of future world growth will come from outside of Europe and we will soon be able to make our own trade deals for the first time in over 40 years. While as much frictionless trade with Europe must also be secured, I look forward to having our own independent trade policy as soon as possible.
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