I have been receiving a lot of correspondence from constituents about the result of the EU referendum.
I made it clear to my constituents that I had hoped we would vote to Remain and urged people to do so. Indeed I share the frustrations and disappointment of many in Wimbledon that so many across the country decided to vote to Leave.
This was a referendum that many of our citizens had called for and I believe the question needed to be democratically decided by the citizens of our country. The most important thing in the whole referendum debate is that each voter had the chance to have their say. There is a very good argument that the most serious of constitutional decisions cannot be made by politicians alone, but must have the support of the people.
Some of the correspondence has called for a second referendum and some for Parliament to impose a threshold for the result and turnout.
I cannot support a call for a threshold being applied retrospectively, causing a new referendum to be held. The rules under which the referendum was held were made clear in advance, and therefore to change them retrospectively would be grossly unfair. Indeed the anger of Leave voters would not only be understandable, but fully justified if that were to happen. Additionally I suspect the last thing we need as a country is an immediate return of a divisive referendum campaign.
As exit negotiations proceed, or indeed if a new deal could be offered, then the prospect of a second referendum or another solution might be an option. Should any such an opportunities arise to test the will of the people again I shall carefully examine them.
Many constituents have also pointed out correctly that the referendum was not legally binding, but I stood on a manifesto promise to deliver a referendum and respect its result, and that is what I will do. The referendum would have been a pointless exercise were its result not to be respected. Voters are already disillusioned by politics, and I will not take any action to make this worse.
However, my key priority as exit negotiations commence will be working to ensure we get the best deal possible for our country, London and Wimbledon. We must protect jobs and livelihoods.
This referendum has exposed a worrying level of division in our society. We must all speak out against horrific examples of racism that have been seen since the referendum. We must also continue to strive to make sure nobody feels like they are being left behind, and that everyone can benefit from economic growth. This is a very difficult task, and one not only the United Kingdom is facing. The referendum result should cause everyone involved in politics to have a long and serious think about the consequences of this vote.
I do not support a hard Brexit, and I have made it clear publically that this approach would be bad for our country, London and Wimbledon.
I want to see access to the Single Market for British service providers and manufacturers. I am particularly interested in ensuring London’s world-leading financial services market is not hampered, which is a sector which many of my constituents work in. I have recently highlighted this to the Secretary of State for leaving the EU (below), the Chancellor and the Leader of the House. I also recently made a speech about the importance of EU financial services to the UK in the House of Commons, which you can read here and an article in The Times on the same subject, which you can read here:
We also need to ensure now more than ever that foreign workers, particularly EU nationals, feel welcome and that their significant contribution to our economy and society is recognised. I know that this is particularly true in Wimbledon, where many EU and foreign nationals work in a range of professional services.
However, I have been contacted by a number of constituents who currently work in the EU, or have family living there, who are worried about their rights and feel that the current discourse is only focusing on EU nationals in the UK. We need to secure rights of both EU and UK nationals.
I asked a question in the House of Commons recently about when the Government expects to have agreed to secure the rights of EU nationals currently here. You can see my question and the response below:
The Government has repeatedly stated that it wants to, and expects to, promise to secure these rights. And so, just as you say nobody believes that EU members would expel British immigrants from their countries, you should not believe that the UK would do the same.
The Prime Minister has sought to secure a reciprocal agreement that could secure the rights of EU nationals in the UK, and UK nationals in the EU. It appears that certain EU countries have refused to grant this.
Finally, I remain devastated that we have chosen to leave the European Union. However, we must accept the will of our fellow citizens and move on as a country.