FORMER TORY GOVERNMENT MINISTER ICKE-SPLAINS THE BENEFITS OF UK JOINING CPTPP AND STILL HAVING CLOSE TIES TO THE EU

Why did The City of London become the banker of the Renminbi outside of mainland China?

Or to put it another way : why did China make The City of London the banker of the Renminbi outside of mainland China?

Here Greg Hands Icke-splains why the UK shoud join the CPTPP but still keep close ties with the EU.

This also Icke-splains the silence over joining the CPTPP while there was lots of noise, propaganda and lies to get the UK out of the EU.

Hands writes:

Joining CPTPP will not mean we would have to neglect our important trade with Europe. It is unlikely the EU itself would ever join, given that a lot of CPTPP rules are currently incompatible with EU rules. But having tariff-free, quota-free access to the EU, as well as similar provisions with the 11 countries of CPTPP, would put the UK in a powerful position in the free trading world.

It would also leave Labour in a quandary. I have always believed that Labour could seek to join a customs union with the EU. I doubt they would seek to join the Single Market, given that would inevitably mean having to sign up to free movement of people. But it was official Labour policy before 2019 to seek a customs union with the EU – indeed, it was Sir Keir Starmer himself, as Shadow Brexit Secretary, who formulated such a policy.

See : Greg Hands: Why joining CPTPP is the right choice – and would make it impossible for Labour to smuggle us into an EU customs union