27 June 2018; “Britain could end up paying up to £50bn for the Brexit divorce bill because the government has underestimated the costs of leaving, an influential group of MPs have warned.” Reported The Independent.
According to the Independent, Treasury’s earlier estimates missed out £10 billion of costs, including £3 billion towards the European Development Fund.
“In a new report, the PAC said Treasury estimates missed “potentially significant” costs such as setting up new post-Brexit customs and trade arrangements and participating in EU schemes after leaving the EU, which taxpayers could pay into for years to come” and “Some payments could continue up to 2064, the committee claimed, which will infuriate Brexiteers who are keen to make a clean break with the EU”, reported The Independent.
Meg Hillier, Labour PAC chair, said: “The true cost of Brexit is a matter of outstanding public interest. Government must provide parliament and the public with clear and unambiguous information.
“Government’s narrow estimate of the so-called divorce bill does not meet this description. It omits at least £10bn of anticipated costs associated with EU withdrawal and remains subject to many uncertainties.
“Given these uncertainties, it is critical that parliament and the taxpayer are kept informed as agreements are reached and new information becomes available.
“A parliamentary vote on EU withdrawal will only be truly meaningful if this information is disclosed in a timely fashion.”, said Hillier.
Responding to concerns raised by car manufacturers and other businesses, the UK’s prime minister Theresa May said, “Our goal – a deep and special partnership that ensures trade remains as free and frictionless as possible and allows established patterns of trade to continue without disruption – is ambitious but it is achievable, because it is in the mutual interest of the UK and the EU.”
“Now, what happens if it were the case that there were no deal? Obviously, there are certain things like flights and so forth where there would have to be negotiations that take place in other environments,” she said.
