Brexit: UK should pay into EU budget to help resolve divorce bill row, former minister says

'To say we do not wish to be defined by Brexit is like Winston Churchill saying in 1940 he did not want his government to be defined by the war'

Lord Bridges of Headley says UK should continue to pay into the Brussels budget in order to secure a transitional deal (PA Wire/PA Images)

The UK should continue to pay into the Brussels budget in order to secure a transitional deal which closely mimics membership of the European Union, a former Brexit minister has said.

Lord Bridges said leaving the European Union (EU) represented a "gargantuan" challenge and Theresa May's government should guard against "careless talk" suggesting that her administration would not be defined by the task of leaving the 27 nation bloc.

The former minister, who quit David Davis's department in June, suggested that the Government should seek an implementation period which lasts until the end of 2020.

His comments came after Chancellor Philip Hammond suggested that the UK's relationship with the EU during a transitional period would be "a lot like the status quo".

In his first major intervention since leaving the Government, Lord Bridges told peers that ministers and officials should not be distracted from the task in hand.

He said that the negotiations so far showed "we are still some way off" the "immediate goal" of moving on to talks with Brussels on trade.

The challenge of creating a new partnership with Brussels "is a gargantuan task" - which must involve the whole of Government, despite Mrs May's desire to pursue a domestic policy agenda.

Lord Bridges said: "I hear talk of the Government not wishing to be defined by Brexit. But Brexit is the biggest change this nation has faced since 1945.

"To say we do not wish to be defined by Brexit is like Winston Churchill saying in 1940 he did not want his government to be defined by the war.

"Such careless talk costs time, as it allows the machinery of government to be distracted from the task at hand. The priority for every department must be to help ministers get the best possible deal, prepare us for Brexit, and ensure we prosper once we have left. Nothing is more important."

The Government has ruled out remaining in the customs union or single market beyond the March 2019 Brexit date, but Lord Bridges said the existing arrangements should be preserved "as far as possible" to avoid businesses being forced to change processes twice.

Paying into the Brussels budget during the transition process would also help resolve the bitter row over a Brexit "divorce bill", he suggested.

"We should make it clear that we are willing to continue to contribute to the EU budget as we cross the bridge - in other words, between March 2019 and the end of 2020.

"This would help us to address the EU's concern that our withdrawal blows a hole in their budget; we would be honouring commitments that we have made for the rest of the EU's budgetary period; and then the EU would need to justify why we must contribute more than this."

Campaigners for EU citizens to have their rights guaranteed after Brexit will lobby MPs on Wednesday and hold a rally in Trafalgar Square.

Nicolas Hatton, of the3million campaign, said: "We understand that immigration rules are likely to change. But it is wrong to move the goalposts after the match has started for those of us who are already living and working here."

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: "These millions of people have been forced to live with uncertainty about their futures.

"This is despite helping to keep the UK's public services and economy going. The Government must make it clear that their rights are guaranteed once the UK leaves the EU."