This is the transcript of a speech delivered by Lord Falconer during the Spectator’s second Brexit debate. Full coverage of the event can be found here.
I so agree with Daniel Hannan that we are at a fork in the road. I think the public realise that as well, that the interest in the European Union referendum has been matched by the interest in the Scottish referendum. People feel that there is a really important decision to be made and it is to be made by the British people.
I can only tell you why I think we should Remain. It is probably one of the most significant arguments that needs to be made in my political life. I believe that one should approach the question on what is best for the British people and in particular younger British people because the decision that we make on 23 June will be one that will last for generations to come. I think that in making that decision, the sorts of issues that Daniel and Suzanne identified are the right issues to focus on – what makes Britain the most prosperous, what gives us most control over our own destiny, what makes us most secure and what most secures our values? In relation to all of those questions, I believe the answer is Remain.
First of all: the most prosperous Britain. If we leave the European Union then we leave a market of 27 other nations to which we have free access. It strikes me as inconceivable that if we leave that market we will be allowed to trade with that market on as good a terms as we get as a member at the moment. The argument that we can just step straight back in as a free trade organisation appears to me to be absurd.
Secondly, in relation to control, a point majored on by both of the speakers. They speak of the free-trade zone that excludes Belarus, all of those countries that trade freely into the European Union do so at three costs. One, they have to accept free movement of labour; two, most of them make a contribution to the budget and three, most of them without any control themselves have to accept the rules of the single market. On the basis of control I believe our control over our own destiny would be reduced, not increased.
Thirdly, in relation to a safer Britain. We at the moment have a number of arrangements with the European Union, we share information on DNA, we share information on fingerprints, we share information on number plates and cars that move around Europe. We also have the European Arrest Warrant. If we leave the European Union we will not get the benefits of any of those things, we will be less safe and what is more, we will become a haven for people who commit criminal acts. Imagine if we were the one country in the European Union outside those arrangements.
Finally, values. For me an internationalist Britain, a Britain that is maritime and trading, if it turns its back on the European Union, turns its back not just on the organisation that has been instrumental since the 60s in bringing peace to Europe, it is also our natural market. Yes, of course you are right, Daniel and Suzanne, when you say we get rid of any limitations that come from having entered into any international agreements but we also lose all the benefits of those. I would much, much prefer to be in a country that embraces Europe, that does not turn its back on Europe, that does not believe that it is in the best interests of the country to be a country standing alone outside Europe. So for all these reasons I will be voting to Remain on 23 June and I urge you all to do the same.
Lord Falconer is a Labour Peer, Shadow Lord Chancellor and Shadow Secretary of State for Justice.
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