Sophy Ridge on Sunday Interview with Priti Patel MP

ANY QUOTES USED MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO SKY NEWS, SOPHY RIDGE ON SUNDAY

NIALL PATERSON: Let’s some reaction to what we’ve just heard from Gina Miller, we’re joined from Essex by the former Cabinet Minister and Boris Johnson supporter, Priti Patel. A very good morning to you Ms Patel.

PRITI PATEL: Good morning.

NP: I just wondered your thoughts on what you just heard. Obviously we had heard from John Major earlier in the week that he was considering legal action and Gina Miller is suggesting that if Boris Johnson doesn’t rule suspending Parliament we’re going to court again.

PRITI PATEL: Sure, well look, I’m not at all surprised because there seems to be this absolutely relentless movement to delay Brexit, stop Brexit from happening and of course question the integrity of a government, a future government now and not the current government under Theresa May but a future government and its new renewed determination to exit the European Union and do something that our elected politicians like myself have said that we want to do which is to deliver Brexit.

NP: But if it’s testing the legality as indeed was the case with the Article 50 case that went all the way to the Supreme Court, well let’s not forget that Gina Miller was proved right. If it’s about proving or disproving the legality about proroguing in these circumstances, what’s the issue?

PRITI PATEL: Well look, first of all I think the issue is that it is now down to Members of Parliament and a new government to actually take action, not for a third party by going through the courts and I think that’s exactly how it should have been previously as well after 2016. After the referendum the government was very clear back then that Brexit meant Brexit and that we are going to leave the EU, instead we had a range of third party anti-Brexit organisations and positions who chose to go to the court to derail basically the whole Brexit delivery and also to tie the hands of politicians, the government and Parliament. That is simply not acceptable and quite frankly the British public are sick to death of this, they want to see a government now with renewed conviction, get out there and do exactly what it said it would do which is now to deliver Brexit. This should not be about the semantics of Parliament or proroguing Parliament, we now have to get behind a new government that is very clear in a future determination now which is to get out of the European Union come what may by October 31st.

NP: Sick to death the public might be but I’ll say it again, Gina Miller was proved right, she won the case and there’s every possibility that she could win this one, it would be proved by the Supreme Court that it is not within Boris Johnson’s power to prorogue in these circumstances so once again we heard all this rhetoric from politicians at the time of the last case, isn’t it time for a little bit of self-respect and self-regard on the part of politicians like yourself and say, do you know what, going through the courts is not anti-British, it’s not anti-democratic, it’s pursuing an opportunity that everyone in this country has and the courts might just agree with her, again.

PRITI PATEL: Well I think it’s quite important to recognise that of course politicians, particularly those who were elected in 2017, were elected on a manifesto and a mandate to deliver Brexit. We are the elected representatives who have that job to do and that’s the point of the new government going forward, that it will be in the mandate of the government, a government that do you know is determined to deliver Brexit and it’s not something that we subcontract out to the courts basically now to intervene or to have court judgements telling Parliament and elected politicians on what can be done and what can’t be done. This will now mean that there’ll be a new government and I emphasise this again – after three years of stalemate, of protractedness, of absolutely getting nowhere, where everybody just wanted to please each other, we have to make sure that we now deliver Brexit, we leave the European Union on October 31st come what may be the public, the public that vote for us, vote for people like me, are done with this now. They want us to get on and do the job so that actually we can then get on and deliver a much bigger brighter vision for our country and deliver on all the issues that matter to the electorate.

NP: But if as you and Boris Johnson have repeatedly said, we will be coming out on 31st October come what may, why was it impossible for Boris Johnson to agree to resign if that did not happen? That was during the TV debates and of course various other hustings, why would he not make that commitment to step down if he didn’t do that which he’s also committed to?

PRITI PATEL: Well quite frankly I don't think he needs to make any commitment on that nature whatsoever because he is absolutely focused on making sure that we deliver, he delivers as Prime Minister in a government that …

NP: No, he’s told us that it’s going to happen is the point that I’m making and the dividing line between Mr Hunt and Mr Johnson created let’s not forget by Mr Johnson, is that he has categorically guaranteed that we will be out on 31st October. If we are still in the European Union on 1st November then does Boris Johnson lose your support?

PRITI PATEL: Of course not because he is committed to leaving. I think everybody is missing a fundamental point and principle here which is that Boris Johnson is absolutely unequivocal about the fact that we want to leave, we should be leaving by October 31st. This is not a case of extension anymore, we can no longer be anti-democratic and continue to kick the can down the road. Delay is defeat, it’s as simple as that, we have to leave on 31st October come what may, that is the law of the land, it is exactly how it has now been established in Parliament and with the EU and so the focus has to be on finding the right type, the right process, the right agreement in terms of how we leave. Of course it is responsible that any future government led by Boris Johnson concentrates on doing exactly that, it actually does the preparedness as required to leave on October 31st and at the same time in good faith engages in proper negotiations, considered negotiations with the EU on that whole process of leaving with an agreement as well. Boris has been very clear that he does not want to be in a situation where we don’t have an agreement and quite frankly it will be the job of the government to work day and night to actually get on and actually deliver that outcome so that we can leave, we can deliver Brexit and we can leave on October 31st.

NP: Should Boris Johnson have been more effusive in his praise and support for Sir Kim Darroch during that television debate? We learnt this week of course that even Boris Johnson believes that what he said that night in part played a role in Sir Kim choosing to resign.

PRITI PATEL: Well look, I think Boris has been very clear in subsequent interviews and in his media appearances as well about Kim Darroch and also he spoke in another interview I think with Andrew Neill about the background to that. I think it’s absolutely right, Boris has spoken in support of Sir Kim and I think that’s the right thing, I’ve actually worked with Sir Kim Darroch as well in Washington so I just don’t think it is now about giving support. Quite frankly what has happened and the focus has to be on this whole leak inquiry and making sure that the person, the individuals responsible are held to account because quite frankly civil servants, senior ambassadors need to have the licence to operate, they need to be able to support their ministers and work within the parameters of government to do their job.

NP: If that is the case then why did Boris Johnson not criticise the President of the United States after he called our man in Washington ‘stupid’?

PRITI PATEL: Because I think the focus absolutely and rightly so, and I’ve said this in the days, this week as well, the focus has to be on this leak and who was responsible because absolutely, putting out this information in the public domain and also breaking confidences and trust basically, and the consequences of that we’ve now seen with Sir Kim resigning. He felt he couldn’t stay to continue doing his job and at the same time of course this has repercussions within our own civil service and our own diplomatic community in how confident they feel about doing their jobs. So I think actually we shouldn’t be looking backwards, we’ve got to look forwards and at the same time make sure we have the right kind of sanctions in place for individuals who behave in this way and leak what is sensitive, confidential government information.

NP: No one is denying that the leak inquiry needs to proceed and if it can arrive at conclusions as to who is responsible, all the better but it just doesn’t stack up to say on the one hand Boris Johnson wants to support Kim Darroch, wants to support civil servants, diplomats being able to do their jobs around the world and when the President of the United States says some things, pretty horrendous things, about our representative there – silence from Team Johnson.

PRITI PATEL: Well I don’t think it’s the case the Boris has to give a running commentary on everything that the President has to say, I mean that’s a fad. Boris has been a former Foreign Secretary and he has worked incredibly well with diplomats around the world and Presidents and Heads of State around the world too. It is not for him to keep on giving a running commentary, he has been very clear quite frankly in his support of Sir Kim. I’ve had many other politicians who are members of the current government and I think the focus quite frankly now is on how the Foreign Office can continue to do its job, its work and importantly now focus on what happened with this information and how it got out in the public domain and prevent something like that from happening again.

NP: Indeed and I’m not after a running commentary from Boris Johnson but if you can direct me to one instance of where the former Foreign Secretary has been critical of Donald Trump I’d appreciate it.

PRITI PATEL: Well he has spoken previously about President Trump in terms of his comments in the past. Now that’s a matter for Boris and of course he has spoken about that in his time as Foreign Secretary as well. I just don’t think now we need to dwell on the past, we have to move forward and quite frankly our focus right now – and this will be the focus of a new government – will be to renew our standing in the world and that will happen through delivering Brexit but also delivering for our country post-Brexit and absolutely re-establishing our strong ties with leaders, with Prime Ministers, with Presidents around the world and on top of that strengthening our diplomatic community as we prepare to leave the European Union.

NP: I suppose the issue here is that for a lot of people who are pro-Brexit, this doesn’t look especially like taking back control and reclaiming sovereignty, instead swapping control from Brussels to control from Washington.

PRITI PATEL: Well look, I disagree with that completely because at the end of the day the focus, as I have repeatedly said, has to be that we leave the European Union and we establish ourselves, yes domestically in Westminster as a government but also internationally back out in the world all over again and so there are some great opportunities ahead and I think we have to reflect quite frankly after three years of going nowhere internationally and domestically on Brexit, it is time for a change. There is a great opportunity ahead of us, it is time for absolute renewal across our government domestically and internationally and that will absolutely be the focus of Boris Johnson if he becomes Prime Minister and also when we can actually get on with doing the task that we’ve all been given to do and were elected to do since the 2017 general election.

NP: And whilst we have you here, Ms Patel, what job exactly do you want in a Boris Johnson cabinet?

PRITI PATEL: Well look, I’m not asking for a job at all. I want to see Boris elected as Prime Minister, I want to ensure as I can constantly to convince the Conservative party membership that they should vote for him to become leader of the Conservative party and Prime Minister because only with Boris will we leave on October 31st and the crisis that we’ve had in British politics after three years of going nowhere and frankly that is the focus that we need right now across our country and in the Conservative party.

NP: Priti Patel, always good to see you, thanks for joining us.

PRITI PATEL: Thank you.