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Theresa May, in First Prime Minister’s Questions, Pledges Migration Cap On a Day of Firsts, Theresa May Is Tested in Parliament and Europe
(about 7 hours later)
LONDON — Answering her first set of parliamentary questions as prime minister, Theresa May gave a combative performance against the Labour Party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, on Wednesday, but refused to give a clear picture of the relationship Britain will seek with the European Union after its referendum decision to quit the bloc. LONDON — Underscoring her arrival in the political limelight, Britain’s new prime minister, Theresa May, on Wednesday faced down the opposition leader in Parliament before flying to Berlin to discuss British withdrawal from the European Union with Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Speaking ahead of a meeting in Berlin with the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, Mrs. May recommitted herself to her Conservative Party’s target of reducing net immigration to below 100,000 people a year — though she conceded that it would “take time to reach that goal,” and appeared to backtrack from an earlier objective of achieving it by 2020. In Berlin, the early signs were positive, though the visit was less about detailed negotiation than it was establishing positions and developing a working rapport with Ms. Merkel, the union’s most powerful politician.
Migration was a central issue in last month’s referendum over membership in the European Union, which guarantees the right of free movement of people, capital, goods and services, and in that way made it impossible for Britain to stop Europeans from coming to the country for work. Initially, the two leaders appeared tense, and, as Ms. Merkel opened with her remarks, she occasionally glanced at Mrs. May, who kept her gaze ahead, listening intently to the translation.
Despite Mrs. May’s repetition of the migration target, which had been questioned by some of her senior colleagues, the time span over which she intends to hit it remained vague. But, when asked about their first impressions of one another, Mrs. May broke into a wide smile and responded that, “We have two women here who, if I may say so, want to get on with the job and want to deliver the best possible results for the people of the U.K. and of Germany.”
In Parliament, Mrs. May struck a confident, sometimes acerbic, tone and, to cheers from her own lawmakers, likened Mr. Corbyn to an “unscrupulous boss,” suggesting that his top tier of lawmakers had to “double their workload” while he “exploits the rules to further his own career.” The chancellor, after pausing for a moment to hear the final words of the simultaneous translation, turned to Mrs. May with an equally broad smile and said, “Genau,” German for “exactly.” Ms. Merkel appeared to soften her impatience over London’s delay in triggering the start of formal negotiations, and signaled a willingness to give Mrs. May’s new government time to figure out what it wants before moving ahead.
Mr. Corbyn, who faces a leadership challenge from a Labour lawmaker, Owen Smith, has been hit by the mass resignation of many members of his senior team in Parliament, leading some of those who remain loyal to have more than one portfolio. An understanding between the two leaders could provide crucial support, and time, for Mrs. May and her negotiators as they tackle the complex task of extricating Britain from more than four decades of European integration.
Mrs. May stressed her determination not to rush into making a formal declaration of Britain’s departure that would start the clock ticking on a two-year negotiating deadline. In London, she had reiterated a pledge to reduce net migration — a key issue in last month’s “Brexit” referendum — promising to cut it to below 100,000 a year, though appearing to backtrack on a deadline for doing so.
In both capitals, Mrs. May showed few signs of being of being a novice, despite having been in the job for just one week. She seemed relatively at ease both in the rather sober and businesslike forum with Ms. Merkel, and in the rowdy atmosphere of Parliament during the question session for the prime minister.
Before she flew to Berlin, her office issued a statement saying that Britain was relinquishing its turn to hold the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, where national governments meet, which was scheduled for the second half of next year. That move was almost inevitable, given the outcome of the referendum.
On Thursday, Mrs. May plans to meet in Paris with President François Hollande.
While Ms. Merkel was diplomatic on Wednesday, German and French politicians insist that Britain cannot keep access to the European Union’s single market without accepting the free movement of workers across frontiers — something that Mrs. May is under pressure at home to resist.
In the parliamentary session, Mrs. May refused to be drawn out on that issue, when asked by a veteran Conservative lawmaker, Edward Leigh, whether she was willing to “reject staying in the single regulated market and offering instead to our friends in Europe a free trade deal very much in their interests.” Mrs. May said she would take heed of calls to control free movement, but also aim to negotiate the “right deal and the best deal” over trade.
Confronting the leader of the opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, Mrs. May struck a confident, sometimes acerbic, tone and likened him to an “unscrupulous boss,” suggesting that his top tier of lawmakers had to “double their workload” while he “exploits the rules to further his own career.”
Mr. Corbyn, who faces a leadership challenge from a Labour rival, Owen Smith, has been hit by the mass resignation of much of his senior team in Parliament, leading some of those who remain loyal to have more than one portfolio.
Mrs. May pointedly thanked Labour lawmakers who defied the views of Mr. Corbyn to vote alongside her on Monday to renew Britain’s Trident nuclear missile system.Mrs. May pointedly thanked Labour lawmakers who defied the views of Mr. Corbyn to vote alongside her on Monday to renew Britain’s Trident nuclear missile system.
And she referred to the fact that she is the Conservative Party’s — and the nation’s — second female prime minister (the first was Margaret Thatcher), saying that she had “long heard the Labour Party asking what the Conservative Party does for women” before adding the answer: “It just keeps making us prime minister.” She noted that she was the Conservative Party’s — and the nation’s — second female prime minister (the first was Margaret Thatcher), saying that she had “long heard the Labour Party asking what the Conservative Party does for women” before adding the answer: “It just keeps making us prime minister.”
However Mrs. May avoided one question from Mr. Corbyn, who asked her about past comments made her foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, about President Obama’s “part-Kenyan” heritage and a reference to Africans as “pickaninnies,” a derogatory word for black children.
Before Mrs. May flew to Berlin, her office released a statement saying that Britain was relinquishing its turn to hold the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, where national governments meet, which was scheduled for the second half of next year. That move was almost inevitable, given the British intention to quit the bloc.
Mrs. May hopes to strike up a solid working relationship with her German counterpart, who will play a leading role in the deal which Britain wants to strike over its exit from the European Union. But Wednesday’s talks are unlikely to get into any significant detail, officially at least. On Thursday, Mrs. May meet in Paris with President François Hollande of France.
In Parliament, Mrs. May refused to be drawn in over one of the crucial issues: whether Britain would seek to retain access to the European Union’s single market for goods and services. Most British exporters and much of its financial sector regards this as a priority, but countries that have full access usually have to agree to respect the free movement of workers as a quid pro quo – something Mrs. May is under pressure to reject after the referendum.
Asked by a veteran Conservative lawmaker, Edward Leigh, whether she was willing to “reject staying in the single regulated market and offering instead to our friends in Europe a free trade deal very much in their interests,” Mrs. May gave a cautious response. She will, she said, listen to what people say about controls on free movement, but aims to negotiate the “right deal and the best deal” over trade in goods and services.
Mr. Corbyn attacked what he described as failed Conservative economic policies that had made people poorer, prompting Mrs. May to respond: “He calls it austerity. I call it living within our means.”Mr. Corbyn attacked what he described as failed Conservative economic policies that had made people poorer, prompting Mrs. May to respond: “He calls it austerity. I call it living within our means.”
Mrs. May, however, avoided one question from Mr. Corbyn, who asked her about past comments made by her foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, about President Obama’s “part-Kenyan” heritage.