Theresa May has said the continued influence of EU law and the EU court is a “hard fact” which voters must accept.

The Prime Minister began her speech on Britain’s future relationship with the European Union by telling voters:

The government I lead will be driven not by the interests of the privileged few, but by yours. We will do everything we can to give you more control over your lives. When we take the big calls, we’ll think not of the powerful, but you. When we pass new laws, we’ll listen not to the mighty but to you. When it comes to taxes, we’ll prioritise not the wealthy, but you. When it comes to opportunity, we won’t entrench the advantages of the fortunate few.

She delivered the speech at Mansion House, the official residence of the Lord Mayor of London and home to a historic art collection and one of the largest gold and silver plate collections in the world.

‘Sold Out’ – May Government Faces Open Rebellion After Fishing Industry Brexit Betrayal https://t.co/4Zh8TSQNyN — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) March 19, 2018

The most striking announcement in her speech was her declaration that the public must “face up to some hard facts”, however.

“[E]ven after we have left the jurisdiction of the [European Court of Justice], EU law and the decisions of the ECJ will continue to affect us,” she announced.

“When we leave the EU, the Withdrawal Bill will bring EU law into UK law. That means cases will be determined in our courts. But, where appropriate, our courts will continue to look at the ECJ’s judgments, as they do for the appropriate jurisprudence of other countries’ courts.

“And if, as part of our future partnership, Parliament passes an identical law to an EU law, it may make sense for our courts to look at the appropriate ECJ judgments so that we both interpret those laws consistently.”

Why the British Parliament would be passing laws identical to EU laws after Brexit — and why it should be up to the European Court of Justice to interpret such laws — was unclear.

She also added that “if we agree that the UK should continue to participate in an EU agency the UK would have to respect the remit of the ECJ in that regard.”

Follow Jack Montgomery on Twitter: @JackBMontgomery