February 2018

It is my understanding that my ministerial colleagues at the Department for Exiting the EU and across Government are working to ensure that the referendum result is delivered and that the UK's exit from the EU is a success. As part of its work, the Government has analysed 58 sectors, as defined by the Office for National Statistics, and a list of these has now been published.

At this time it is important to understand, however, that the sectoral analysis is not a series of 58 discrete impact assessments. It is instead a mixture of qualitative and quantitative analysis that is contained in a number of different documents. The analysis ranges from general analysis to detail on specific product lines. It has never been a series of impact assessments on the quantitative impact of exiting the EU.

As everyone is aware, Parliament has voted to ensure that the Government should not publish anything that might undermine the country's negotiating position or that is not in the public interest. I believe that this is a sensible and reasonable approach to take. In some cases, there may also be confidential or commercially sensitive information and it is right that such information should remain private.

I also want to confirm that the UK will be leaving the EU in March 2019, which includes the single market and the customs union at this point. There will be no reversal of this position. More people voted in the referendum than in any election in the last 25 years and as the Prime Minister has explained, the electorate must trust its politicians to put in place the decision that they have taken.