02 Mar Brexiteers’ verdict new EU deal will take two weeks, says MP Michael Fabricant
THE European Research Group will take around two weeks to examine the Prime Minister’s deal with the EU on Northern Ireland, according to Conservative MP Michael Fabricant.
Asked about last night’s meeting of the ERG, he told GB News: “Well, as ever, the PM was very, very enthusiastic, he’s enthusiastic about the deal. And what was interesting was that the audience, the MPs, were enthusiastic about the deal as well.
“It was actually very well received, I hate using cliches, but the cliche of course is the devil will be in the detail.
“We had a meeting with the Prime Minister was at five o’clock, then I had a meeting at six o’clock with the ERG of which I’m a member, there’s about 100 members of the ERG and they are going to take their time as well as the DUP in analysing all the ramifications of the deal, because it is a very, very complex deal.
“The lawyers were saying it will take at least two weeks to come to terms to come to a conclusion.”
In a discussion with Tom Harwood on GB News, he said: “Bill Cash chairs the committee of lawyers and I specifically asked him how long it would take to come to a conclusion, and his answer to me was it would take two weeks.
“I hope it won’t take quite as long.”
Asked about the Matt Hancock Covid messages leaked to The Daily Telegraph, he said: “First of all, some of the WhatsApp messages are taken out of context.
“I mean, I used to WhatsApp the Health Secretary regarding these various matters as well during Covid and things that affected me, that is to say, my constituency in Litchfield and he was very, very good at responding.
“But the decisions were not made by WhatsApp, which is what Labour will be trying to portray, the decisions were made by Cabinet and by the committees, which are subject to Cabinet control.
“So, let’s just wait and see precisely how this goes. I think what it does demonstrate is we need to get this national inquiry into Covid underway sooner rather than later, otherwise there’s just going to be constant speculation.”
He added: “Of course, what I would say is,I do think that Matt Hancock was rather naive to release all his messages to a journalist.
“In fact, we’ve been constantly told by the House of Commons authorities about foreign actors in Russia, Iran and elsewhere, trying to hack into our mobile phones.
“So to actually give your mobile phone to a journalist who was known to be hostile to lockdown struck strikes me as being rather reckless.”
