Press
'Treacherous Treasury' claims signal a new target for hard-Brexiters
03 February 2018
The Guardian
Rees-Mogg stood by his claim that in drawing up its Brexit plans, the Treasury was trying to influence the argument. He also said that Charles Grant, head of the Centre for European Reform, had been given improper briefings. “He is getting private briefings from the Treasury against government policy,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today. “This is very serious. It is not for officials to invent policy. With the referendum and with the EU, the Treasury has gone back to making forecasts. It was politically advantageous in the past. It is the same for them now. I do think they are fiddling the figures.”Grant said it was perfectly normal for officials to talk to think-tanks. “The Treasury cares about economics so it is naturally pushing for the sorts of Brexit that minimise the economic damage,” he said.
Polskie Radio: Straty W. Brytanii na wyjściu z Unii Europejskiej
03 February 2018
Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform speaks to Polskie Radio about transition period for Brexit.
Theresa May refuses to sack Brexit minister Steve Baker over Whitehall comments
02 February 2018
The Huffington Post
Backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg, a hardline Brexiteer, had sparked the row when he pressed the minister about claims made by Charles Grant, of the Centre For European Reform think-tank. Baker had said he was “sorry to say” Rees-Mogg’s account was “essentially correct”.
“At the time I considered it implausible, because my direct experience is that civil servants are extraordinarily careful to uphold the impartiality of the Civil Service,” he added.
“At the time I considered it implausible, because my direct experience is that civil servants are extraordinarily careful to uphold the impartiality of the Civil Service,” he added.
EU threatens sanctions to stop Britain undercutting economy
02 February 2018
The Times
The latest row blew up when Mr Baker was asked by Jacob Rees-Mogg to confirm that Charles Grant, head of the Centre for European Reform, had told him that “officials in the Treasury have deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union are bad, and that officials intend to use the model to influence policy”.
Brexit minister suggests civil servants conspiring against government
02 February 2018
The Irish Times
Jacob Rees-Mogg, the current chairman of the ERG, asked Mr Baker in the Commons on Thursday if he had heard a claim from Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform think tank, that “officials in the Treasury have deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union were bad and that officials intended to use this to influence policy”. Mr Baker said that Mr Rees-Mogg’s account was “essentially correct”, although he said he could not confirm that civil servants had deliberately skewed data. Mr Grant later disputed the account of his remarks, saying that he had told a lunch meeting that Treasury officials favoured a soft Brexit but had not suggested that their data modelling was influenced by that view.
Theresa May will not sack Steve Baker for suggesting he'd heard about a pro-Remain plot
02 February 2018
BuzzFeed News
Theresa May has said Steve Baker will not be sacked over comments made in the House of Commons which appeared to suggest there was a pro-Remain conspiracy. ...Baker failed to challenge a claim from Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg on Thursday that Charles Grant, from the Centre for European Reform think-tank, had alleged this was the case to the minister. He vowed to apologise after he was criticised by MPs and the trade union for senior civil servants.
Theresa May must show her Brexit hand following week of leaks
02 February 2018
The Scotsman
Brexit minister Steve Baker came to the Commons at the start of business on Friday to apologise to MPs.The storm erupted after leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg asked him to confirm if he had heard from Charles Grant, of the Centre for European Reform think tank, that “officials in the Treasury have deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union were bad”.
Steve Baker is safe, but sorry
02 February 2018
The Telegraph
Mr Baker insisted that his comments had been based on an “honest recollection” about the conversation he had with think-tank boss Charles Grant, but he was happy to clarify himself. “As I have put on record many times, I have the highest regard for our hard-working civil servants,” he said.
Brexit minister Steve Baker apologises for saying Treasury officials 'skewed' economy analysis
02 February 2018
The Evening Standard
Mr Baker admitted he should have dismissed the allegation — that Treasury officials were drawing up skewed economic studies to make the case for staying in a customs union with the EU — out of hand when it was raised by fellow Right-winger Jacob Rees-Mogg in the chamber yesterday. Standing up on a point of order, Mr Baker told MPs: “I wish to correct the record of my answer yesterday.” He said he had listened to an audio tape that undermined the account he and Mr Rees-Mogg had given — which was that the allegation had been made to them by the head of the Centre for European Reform think tank, Charles Grant.
Tory Brexit minister makes grovelling public apology for failing to challenge claims of a 'pro-remain conspiracy'
02 February 2018
The Mirror
Speaking in the Commons this morning, Mr Baker told MPs: "I wish to correct the record of my answer yesterday to (Mr Rees-Mogg). He is aware of this point of order. "Yesterday I answered a question based on my honest recollection of conversation. As I explained yesterday, I considered what I understood the suggestion being put to me as implausible because of the long-standing and well regarded impartiality of the civil service.
"The audio of that conversation is now available and I'm glad the record stands corrected.
"The audio of that conversation is now available and I'm glad the record stands corrected.
Battle lines drawn on Brexit
02 February 2018
Financial Times
If the UK does go down the road of staying in a customs union, we can see what kind of deal might be struck. Britain could end up adopting what John Springford and Sam Lowe of the Centre for European Reform call the “Jersey option” (because the Crown Dependencies enjoy a similar relationship with the EU). ...However, as the CER notes, the Jersey option would require Mrs May to soften many of her red lines and her party would be likely to defenestrate her if she did so.
Theresa May justifies refusal to sack embattled Brexit Minister Steve Baker amid fury at civil service conspiracy comments
02 February 2018
The Independent
Mr Baker told MPs he had heard the claim that civil servants were trying to fix a soft Brexit from Charles Grant, head of the influential Centre for European Reform think tank, at a lunch at the Conservative Party conference in 2017. But a recording of the exchange emerged which contradicted his claims, in which Mr Grant said the Treasury was “determined” to stay in the customs union but nothing further.
Brexit Minister Steve Baker sorry for conspiracy about civil servants scuppering EU withdrawal
02 February 2018
ITV News
The storm erupted after Jacob Rees-Mogg asked the minister to confirm if he had heard from Charles Grant, of the Centre for European Reform think tank, that "officials in the Treasury have deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union were bad and that officials intended to use this to influence policy." Baker said that account was "essentially correct." "At the time I considered it implausible because my direct experience is that civil servants are extraordinarily careful to uphold the impartiality of the civil service," he added. Grant strongly denied the claims, and Baker was forced into an apology when an audio recording emerged which contradicted the minister's recollection of the comments.
Brexit minister says civil servants may be distorting evidence to keep UK in EU customs union
01 February 2018
The Independent
Civil servants may be secretly distorting evidence to “influence” the Government to stay in the EU’s customs union, a Brexit minister has suggested. Steve Baker floated the extraordinary conspiracy claim on the floor of the House of Commons, telling MPs he did not necessarily believe it – but did not rule it out.“I think it would be quite extraordinary if it turned out that such a thing had happened,” the hard Brexit supporter said.Meanwhile, the think-tank head who spoke with Mr Baker - Charles Grant, of the Centre for European Reform – flatly denied he had made any allegation about a civil service conspiracy.
David Davis says he is speaking to "every member state I can" on post-Brexit City deal while Steve Baker doubles down on civil servants claim
01 February 2018
City A.M
Minister Steve Baker doubled-down on comments he made earlier in the week when he confirmed backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg's claim that he had heard from Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, that “officials in the Treasury have deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union were bad and that officials intended to use this to influence policy".
Minister issues thinly veiled hint that civil servants are purposely drawing up gloomy economic forecasts in a bid to keep the UK in the customs union amid fears May is 'going soft on Brexit'
01 February 2018
The Daily Mail
Brexit Minister Steve Baker told MPs that he had been told the 'extraordinary' claim by Charles Grant from the respected Centre for European Reform think-tank. The revelation comes maid fears that Theresa May is 'going soft on Brexit' and getting ready to change her position and keep the UK in the EU customs union.
Jacob Rees-Mogg defends raising claims of Brexit 'conspiracy'
01 February 2018
Sky News
Mr Rees-Mogg asked Brexit minister Steve Baker in the Commons to confirm if he had been told about allegations that civil servants were trying to get ministers to back staying in the EU's customs union. ...The Centre for European Reform's Charles Grant, who was alleged to have been the source of the claim at a Tory party conference event last year, denied making it.
Jacob Rees-Mogg asks minister if civil servants are trying to sabotage Brexit
01 February 2018
The Huffington Post
In an extraordinary exchange in the Commons on Thursday, Rees-Mogg asked Baker to confirm whether he had been told Treasury staff had deliberately skewed analyses to show all scenerios apart from remaining in the Customs Union would be bad for the UK economy. “Will he confirm that he heard from Charles Grant, from the Centre For European Reform, that officials in the Treasury had deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the Customs Union were bad, and that officials intended to use this to influence policy?” the hardline Brexiteer asked.
Treasury deliberately produced gloomy Brexit forecasts to keep UK in customs union, top minister suggests
01 February 2018
The Telegraph
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said: "I told Mr Baker at Conservative Party conference that I was aware of work in the Treasury demonstrating that the economic benefits of Free Trade Agreements with other countries would be significantly less than the economic costs of leaving the Single Market and Customs Union.
"I did not say that the Treasury intended to use this to influence policy, or the Treasury deliberately developed this model with a view to influencing policy."
Cabinet secretary delivers veiled rebuke to Tory Brexiters who question official forecasts
01 February 2018
The Guardian
The Conservative Jacob Rees-Mogg has sought to defend his suggestion that Treasury civil servants are rigging their Brexit analysis. He raised the allegation in the Commons this morning, suggesting that Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Research, had said that “officials in the Treasury had deliberately developed a model to show that all options other than staying in the customs union were bad, and that officials intended to use this to influence policy.” Grant has denied saying this, and others who were at the event where the remark was supposed to have been made have backed Grant’s account. In response Rees-Mogg tweeted this this afternoon.