Thank you for contacting me about the procedure to leave the European Union.
The British people voted to leave the EU in a free and fair referendum, the vote must be accepted.
The law is clear that the process for leaving the EU begins by invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Once Article 50 is invoked, formal negotiations can start in order to set out the UK's future relationship with the EU. EU treaties will cease to apply to the UK once a withdrawal agreement enters into force. If no agreement is reached within two years, EU treaties will cease to apply and the UK will have no new settlement with the EU, unless all EU member states decide to extend the negotiation period.
Article 50 will not be invoked before the end of the year. The Prime Minister has said that she will not invoke Article 50 until we have a UK approach and clear objectives for negotiations. It is in everyone's interests that this is established before we invoke Article 50.
The European Communities Act 1972 gives effect to EU treaties in British law, but simply repealing the Act without invoking Article 50 would be a breach of international and EU law. Such a breach would create a hostile environment in which to negotiate a new relationship with the EU.
Brexit means Brexit and we are going to make a success of it. The referendum campaign was fought, the vote was held, turnout was high, and the public gave their verdict. There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door, and no second referendum. The country voted to leave the European Union, and it the duty of the Government and Parliament to make sure we do just that
It will be for the Prime Minister to invoke Article 50 by informing the European Council of the UK's intention to withdraw from the EU. The decision to invoke Article 50 is not subject to qualified majority voting by any EU institution. The withdrawal agreement will, however, be concluded by the Council by qualified majority voting after the consent of European Parliament. This means that no member state could veto the deal but it would need to reach a critical level of support.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
