Philip Hammond has backed attempts to keep the UK in the EU customs union after Brexit, increasing the chances of Boris Johnson’s Bill being sabotaged.
The former chancellor – now sitting as an independent – sided with Labour on the crucial issue, arguing it would avoid the damage to the union threatened by the current deal.
Mr Hammond also argued a customs union would reduce the continuing risk of a no-deal Brexit at the end of 2020, if no trade deal has been struck by the end of the short transition period.
“Yes, I could support a customs union,” he told Sky News, arguing it would “overcome the problem” in the prime minister’s deal.
Mr Hammond’s move lays bare the reason for Mr Johnson’s refusal to allow full scrutiny of his “paused” Withdrawal Agreement Bill and push for a general election instead. [...]
The former chancellor warned Mr Johnson’s deal “splits Northern Ireland” from Great Britain, saying: “If the whole of the UK is in a customs union, then the whole of the UK would be treated the same and the threat to the union in Northern Ireland would be gone.”
And he pointed to the risk of a crash-out Brexit, adding: “That applies as much to a no-deal exit at the end of 2020 as it does to a no-deal exit at the end of 2019.” [...]
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