Britain will not follow the EU rules after Brexit: Sajid Javid

Before leaving for a meeting with business leaders in Davos, Switzerland the Finance Minister said that the country will not continue with the EU rules after the exit

According to the British Finance Minister Britain will be trying to double the country's underlying economic growth after leaving the European Union, but will not think about big manufacturing sectors that will continue to stick to the Union rules.

During an interview with Financial Times, he said that the country would not commit to sticking to the EU rules after Brexit. He is leaving for a meet with business leaders in Davos, Switzerland. "There will not be alignment, we will not be a rule-taker, we will not be in the single market and we will not be in the customs union - and we will do this by the end of the year," he said.

Sajid Javid
Sajid Javid Twitter/Sajid Javid

BCC said businesses were willing to be pragmatic about approach to Brexit

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said businesses were willing to be pragmatic about this approach to Brexit but added that the government needed to be clear about its plans.

"Uncertainty around the extent of divergence risks firms moving their production elsewhere," BCC co-executive director Claire Walker said. The opposition Labour Party said Javid's plans amounted to right-wing ideology overriding common sense and that jobs in the motor industry and manufacturing were under threat.

Boris Johnson said there will be no extension to an 11-month window

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said there will be no extension to an 11-month window in which he hopes to negotiate a long-term trade agreement with the EU after Britain leaves on January 31, despite the EU saying this is unrealistic.

The Financial Times reported that Javid wanted to boost annual economic growth rates to the 2.75 percent level seen in the second half of the 20th century through greater investment in skills training and physical infrastructure. Britain's economy probably grew about 1.3 percent last year, and the Bank of England estimates it will struggle to grow much faster over the long run due to reduced immigration and greater trade friction after Brexit.

Javid will present his first budget on March 11 and said it would focus on "people and place", part of the Conservative government's efforts to reward traditionally Labour-supporting areas that backed it due to Brexit on December 12's election.

(With inputs from agency)

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