Amendment to EU withdrawal bill calls for independent scrutiny of settlement and for parliament to have final say

Labour has tabled a new amendment to the EU withdrawal bill that would commit the government to giving MPs a vote on the Brexit financial settlement.

The chief secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss, told parliament on Wednesday it would be against Britain’s national interest for the government to give more details about the settlement, after she was challenged by the Labour backbencher Chris Leslie.

“Our officials have been working on it for months. It would be completely wrong of me to cut across those discussions by commenting on speculation about the financial settlement, and it would not be in our national interest.”

Truss was responding to an urgent question from Leslie, a former shadow chancellor, which was tabled after widespread media reports that the government has reached an outline agreement with Brussels over the formula for calculating the financial settlement.

The bill is expected to reach more than £50bn, and be spread over a number of years. However, Truss insisted: “What we’ve seen today is simply media speculation: we will update the house when there is more detail to give.”

The shadow chief secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, said Labour accepted her assertion that the government could not set out a precise figure, “given that it is a sensitive stage of the negotiations”, but urged the government to back a new amendment to the government’s key piece of Brexit legislation. It would require the financial settlement to be assessed by two independent watchdogs, the Office for Budget Responsibility and the National Audit Office; and for MPs to be given a vote. The amendment is expected to be voted on next Wednesday.

Quick guide What is the EU withdrawal bill? Show Hide What is the EU withdrawal bill? The EU Withdrawal Bill – once known as the Great Repeal Bill – is going through the House of Commons to repeal the 1972 European Communities Act and transpose all existing EU legislation into domestic UK law, which will avoid a 'cliff-edge' change on the day after we leave the EU. Parts of the bill have been highly controversial, and MPs have tabled hundreds of amendments to try and change its wording, including a significant number of Conservative rebels. Some of the key controversies include its use of so-called Henry VIII powers, which will give government ministers the power to tweak the wording of laws to make sure they make sense in UK legislation - but those changes could take place without having to go through parliament. MPs have called this a "power grab" by the government. The government estimates around 800 to 1,000 measures called statutory instruments will be required to make sure the bill is applied correctly. Other concerns include the government's decision not to include the EU charter of fundamental rights in the law being transposed. Other amendments are attempts to affect the Brexit process, including legislating for a transitional period and giving MPs a binding meaningful vote on the deal secured by Theresa May, before the deal is finalised.

Leslie said the divorce bill could amount to £1,000 for every person in the UK, on top of other expenses, including the rising cost of living as a result of the cheaper pound.

Referring to remarks about the settlement made earlier this year by Boris Johnson, Leslie said of Brexit-supporting MPs: “They’ve gone from ‘go whistle’, to ‘where do we sign?’”

Theresa May, however, rejected the idea that her government had mishandled the Brexit negotiations.

Speaking to reporters during a trip to the Middle East, which saw her arrive in Jordan on Tuesday evening, the prime minster rejected claims by the former international development secretary, Priti Patel, that the government was under-prepared.

In a speech earlier this week, Patel said the government had been “ill-equipped” in its preparations for Brexit, and said May should tell the EU to “sod off” over the settlement payment.

May dismissed her such arguments: “We’ve done a lot of preparatory work in Brexit talks, and of course that work continues as the negotiations take place.

“In terms of the resources the government is putting into this, you’ll know that we’ve already, over the last couple of years, put just over £700m into the preparations. And in the budget last week the chancellor announced £3bn being put aside over the next couple of years as preparation for all eventualities from these talks.”

Leslie asked Truss to reassure MPs that they would get a vote on the settlement before it was paid. “This is not what the British people voted for in the referendum; it is not taking back control, it is losing control.”

Truss said, however, that talking about numbers in the house “would cut across our negotiating position”.

The government has been keen to secure a deal with Brussels on the financial liabilities it will continue to incur after Brexit in order to move negotiations on to the second phase of talks, about a future trade deal.

Truss stressed that no payment would be made until a trade deal was settled. “As we have said before, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed; and any settlement we make is contingent on us securing a suitable outcome as set out in the prime minister’s Florence speech.”

Not all Conservative backbenchers were supportive of Truss. Robert Halfon said that if the government appeared to have “wads of money” for the EU, it would “undermine our argument on the public sector and the need for good housekeeping, especially when the House of Lords says we have no legal obligations”.

Philip Davies, the MP for Shipley, said the government should not give a “bung” to the EU, and any spare resources should be spent on public services.

Truss said the government was determined to get the “best deal for the taxpayer”.