‘We’ll be EU’s BIGGEST export market’ Ex-Brexit minister on UK’s ‘powerful’ Brexit stance

FORMER Brexit minister David Jones has insisted the UK remains in a “powerful position” to secure a trade deal with the European Union after it breaks away from the bloc.

The Tory MP for Clwyd West said there was “no reason” why Britain could not secure an arrangement similar to the one between the EU and Canada.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, the Brexiteer said Britain had “complete alignment” with Brussels when it came to regulations and standards.

He said: “There is no reason why we can’t strike the sort of free trade agreement the third countries have got with the EU, for example, Canada has got a very broad free trade agreement.

“And we’re in a very powerful position at the moment because we’re already members of the EU, we have complete alignment of regulations and standards and therefore we start from a very sweet spot.

“And we should take advantage of that to put together a very good free trade agreement which is what I hope that we will get because I think it’s not only in our interests, it’s in the interests of the European Union as well because when we’ve left, we will be their biggest export market.”

However, he did say any Brexit deal that would allow the European Court of Justice jurisdiction in the UK would be “unacceptable”.

Mr Jones argued that while some issues could be sacrificed in negotiations – the issue of parliamentary sovereignty must be absolute.

He said: “Anything that does not give us complete independence from the European Union, I think would be generally unacceptable to the British people.