East Mids MPs quit anti-Brexit pressure group
East Midlands Tory MPs Nicky Morgan and Anna Soubry have quit anti-Brexit pressure group Open Britain.
The pair quit Open Britain along with fellow Conservative MP Dominic Grieve.
In a joint statement the trio said: “As long standing Conservative Party members and MPs it is untenable for us to play any further role in an organisation such as Open Britain, which is advocating campaigning against Conservative MPs or candidates, and we will not be doing so.”
Nicky Morgan
Morgan is MP for Loughborough, whilst Soubry is represents the Broxtowe constituency in Nottinghamshire.
The three largest grassroots pro-European organisations in the country – Open Britain, European Movement, and Britain for Europe – have launched what they are calling a key seat strategy, where their volunteers who wish to get involved in the General Election will be able to find a constituency near them where they can campaign against hard Brexit.
The three organisations between them say they have around 600,000 supporters on their mailing lists, with individual contacts in almost every constituency. Those activists wanting to campaign against a hard Brexit will be mobilised to do so in constituencies in every nation and region of the UK.
Lord Mandelson, Open Britain board member, said: “As a former European Trade Commissioner, I have seen such negotiations from the inside. For Britain to get the best possible trade deal, it is totally counter-productive for Theresa May to go into them with a rigid set of red lines.
“With millions of jobs at stake, she must explore all options to secure the continuity of Britain’s trade and investment in Europe.
“Election candidates of all parties should be demanding that a hard Brexit is rejected and making clear that they will reserve judgement on the outcome until they see whether we get exactly the same trade benefits, as David Davis has promised.
“Nobody has to take a position on this now: they just have to ask the right questions and keep an open mind about the answers.”
