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Chair asks Cabinet Secretary to set date for "Brexit" evidence

25 April 2016

Rt Hon. Andrew Tyrie MP, Chairman of the Treasury Committee, writes to Sir Jeremy Heywood, the Cabinet Secretary, asking him to set a date for Iain Mansfield, an official at the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, to give evidence on his award-winning essay on "Brexit".

The Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Business Secretary have declined the Committee's request for Mr Mansfield's appearance, arguing that it would be in breach of the Government's internal guidelines, the Osmotherly Rules.

Chair's comments

Commenting on the correspondence, Mr Tyrie said:

"The views of Mr Mansfield matter. He has offered one of the few detailed assessments of the impact of "Brexit" on the UK economy. 

Mr Mansfield provided his assessment in a personal capacity and, having obtained permission. The Government's internal guidelines on this, the so-called Osmotherly Rules – to which the Prime Minister alludes – do not apply in such cases. The Committee would like to hear from him."

Further information

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