Brexit secretary refuses to give evidence to Parliament

• 23 October 2018 - Letter to Rt Hon. Dominic Raab MP ref Scrutiny of the Withdrawal Agreement (pdf 86KB)
• Scrutiny of the Brexit negotiations
• European Union Committee

Background

The Committee wrote the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU on 5 September 2018 inviting him to appear before the Committee as soon as possible after the October European Council, after the Secretary of State gave a Commitment in a letter of the 17 July "to give evidence on a regular basis".

The Committee was told on Tuesday 23 October that the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU will be unable to attend or give evidence to the Committee until after a deal with the EU has been finalised. The Committee describes this as "unacceptable… [it] inhibits the Committee in fulfilling its obligations in scrutinising the progress of Brexit negotiations".

The Committee's letter also called on the Government to ensure that enough time is allowed between an agreement being reached and any 'Meaningful Vote,' so that committees can make recommendations to the two Houses. Recent reports suggest that the time allowed for committees to report on the agreement and the 'political declaration' on future UK-EU relations could be a little as ten days.

Further information

• About Parliament: Select committees
• Visit Parliament: Watch committees

Image: Parliamentary copyright