The Reform UK MP was reacting to news of a so-called “Farage Clause” included in draft negotiation documents.
Lee Anderson is one of Reform UK’s MPs (Image: Getty)
Lee Anderson has slammed the Government with a 7-word put-down after it was reported that the EU is seeking a so-called “Farage Clause” during negotiations. Brussels is believed to be demanding a guarantee that the UK will compensate it if a future government pulls out of a Brexit “reset” deal that Sir Keir Starmer is currently attempting to reach.
Reform UK’s director of policy, Zia Yusuf, said: “Starmer is quietly dragging Britain back into the EU by the back door, betraying the 17.4 million people who voted to leave. The EU is demanding a ‘Farage Clause’. which would force the UK to pay punitive compensation if a future government unwinds Starmer’s deal after 2029.
Starmer is renegotiating ties with the EU (Image: Getty)
“An EU diplomat said it’s a ‘deterrent for Farage & Co’. Well, they will get a Farage Clause alright. The Financial Times reported that there exists a draft text of a pact on agriculture trade aimed at removing post-Brexit checks on farm produce, that calls for any future UK government that renages to cover the cost of reinstating border and infrastructure controls in the future.
“A Farage Clause that immediately halts UK welfare payments to ALL foreign nationals in the UK (inc EU nationals).”
He added that Reform would also demand the return of money paid to France to “stop the boats”.
Mr Yusuf said: “Macron laughs at us as illegal boat crossings have broken new records EVERY year our treacherous governments have paid them our money. Our Parliament is sovereign.
“Nobody can bind future governments in the UK, including and especially foreign bureaucrats.
“It’s time this country had a leader who negotiated for British people, not for foreign courts and foreign governments. That’s what Prime Minister Nigel Farage will do.”
Mr Anderson quoted the post and added: “And here it is.”
He then issued a seven-word slam: “The whole of our government are traitors.”
To his followers, the Ashfield MP then said: “There is no other way of describing them.
“Or is there? Keep it clean.”
Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show at the beginning of the year, the Prime Minister pointed to steps already taken to align with the EU more closely on agriculture and food, adding: “That’s the sovereign decision that we have taken.
“I think we should get closer, and if it’s in our national interest to have even closer alignment with the single market, then we should consider that, we should go that far.”
The Tories accused the Prime Minister of “surrendering our freedom” to appease his Labour backbenchers, and trying to “undo” Brexit.
Sir Keir added: “I think it’s in our national interest to go further.
“What I would say about the customs union is that I argued for a customs union for many years with the EU, but a lot of water has now gone under the bridge.
“I do understand why people are saying ‘wouldn’t it be better to go to the customs union?’ I actually think that now we’ve done deals with the US which are in our national interest, now we’ve done deals with India which are in our national interest, we are better looking to the single market rather than the customs union for our further alignment.”
