Article by Kwasi for the Surrey Advertiser
This week has been one of the most momentous weeks in the House of Commons since I first had the honour of being elected Member of Parliament for Spelthorne in 2010.
On Tuesday, the House of Commons debated the triggering of Article 50 for 12 hours in one stretch. Many passionate speeches were made. Obviously, Ken Clarke grabbed the headlines with a witty and engaging speech. As a senior parliamentarian, he was indulged and allowed 22 minutes to speak in a debate in which other backbenchers were only given six minutes to make their point.
For me, the triggering of Article 50 is a very simple decision, a ‘no-brainer’ as some people might say. As everyone knows, the referendum ended in a 52 – 48 victory for Vote Leave, a clear and decisive result.
The only way to leave the EU is by triggering Article 50, and so any attempt to block this is, either directly or indirectly, an attempt to deny the result of the referendum.
I have always been very clear about my position. I think that EU is a sclerotic and anachronistic institution. Ongoing problems with the single currency mean that the Eurozone will be a laggard in terms of global economic growth for many years to come. People forget how the single currency was praised as the final achievement of the single market. Today, people often think that the single market is somehow totally separate from the single currency. It isn’t.
Out and about in the Borough, I detect people are getting bored with Brexit. They just want the Government to get on with it. Even people who voted Remain tell me that they want the process of leaving the EU to proceed as smoothly and quickly as possible