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04 September 2019

The Independent: Cross-party group of 40 MEPs sign pledge to work together to keep EU membership on the table


Remain-supporting British MEPs have formed a new cross-party alliance and pledged to work together in the face of Brexit and Boris Johnson's suspension of parliament.

The pact, named the Brussels Declaration, unites the EU delegations of Labour, Greens, Liberal Democrats, Alliance, Plaid Cymru, and the SNP - with the aim of "keeping the door open" to EU membership.

The declaration puts down in writing the informal alliance that has formed among pro-EU British MEPs since the referendum - where cross-party working has been the norm in efforts to oppose the British government. 

"The proroguing, or shutting down the UK Parliament in order to limit scrutiny of the implications of a potential no deal Brexit is completely unacceptable.  Limiting the opportunity for MPs to debate, vote and crucially, to legislate, cannot be the response to a referendum in which Leave campaigned for the UK Parliament to 'take back control'," the MEPs' declaration says.

"In the continuation of the spirit that UK MEPs have worked in since the 2016 Referendum we commit ourselves to continue to work across party lines and declare that it is vital that MPs do likewise. We were all elected just four months ago with clear mandates.  We are working together.  We call upon our European friends and colleagues to assist domestic efforts in keeping the door open to us."

The loose declaration could be a model for pro-EU opposition parties hoping to cooperate back in Westminster. [...]

Full article on The Independent



© The Independent


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