Theresa May will give her Brexit speech in Florence today safe in the knowledge that she finally has the full backing of her Cabinet – at least, until the warm prosecco comes out at party conference. After a difficult week, Cabinet ministers today met on Thursday a two-and-a-half hour meeting where approval was given. In an attempt to demonstrate unity, the two poles of the Cabinet’s Brexit debate – Philip Hammond and Boris Johnson – left No 10 together.
Whether this new Cabinet unity can last is another matter entirely. It’s expected that May will use the speech to propose a transitional deal with the EU of up to two years – along with a financial offer somewhere in the region of £20bn euros. Yet even this could still prove problematic. Michel Barnier’s assertion that during any transition period Britain would have to obey EU rules – implying the continuation of freedom of movement – may be a hard sell to many Brexiteers.
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