Lib Dems on Reeves speech: "spaghetti junction of red tape" between country and continent

EMBARGO: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Commenting on the Chancellor’s Mansion House speech in which Rachel Reeves announced cutting regulation for financial services, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

“If Rachel Reeves was serious about cutting red tape and turbocharging our economy, she would not be ignoring the spaghetti junction of red tape that stands between our country and the continent.

“We will of course scrutinise these proposals closely, but by not going further than simply tinkering around the edges of the Conservatives' botched Brexit deal, our exporters are left suffocating in burdensome paperwork, holding back their immense growth potential.

“The Chancellor needs to free our businesses from these reams of paperwork and begin negotiating a bespoke UK-EU Customs Union that can deliver the meaningful growth needed to protect family finances and rebuild our public services.”

ENDS

Notes to Editor:

Previous Liberal Democrat research has shown that the additional paperwork generated from the Conservatives Brexit deal for businesses to fill out amounts to an additional two billion pieces of paper. That is enough to wrap around the world nearly 15 times over. Reported here: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-paperwork-business-red-tape-b2717885.htmlcallback=in&code=NZCXZWEWNTUTM2U2YI0ZYJFILTKZODETZDBIOWEXMMM0MTJM&state=d96c15474b5046e19d7a1a15ba83a6c3