Brexit remarks by the Chancellor Philip Hammond at IMF Annual Meetings

Speaking today at the IMF Annual Meetings, in Bali, the Chancellor Philip Hammond said:

“I believe there will be a dividend, a deal dividend for us.

“The OBR’s forecast, which is the basis of our current projections for the economy, and our fiscal position is based on a pretty much a midway point between no deal at all and an EEA solution. 

“The deal that we're trying to negotiate with the European Union now represents an improvement from the point of view of British economy and therefore should deliver us an upside in the form of higher economic growth and better outcomes that were otherwise anticipated.”

Philip Hammond added:

“I've always been optimistic that we would get to a deal in the end because it's clearly in the interest of both sides to do so.

“What has happened over the last week [and] 10 days, is that there's been a measurable change in pace.

“There's a real sense now of engagement from both sides of shared enterprise in trying to solve a problem rather than posturing towards each other.

“So, a really important step change, but that shouldn't conceal the fact that we've still got some big differences left to resolve.

“So [the] process is a lot more positive this week, [but the] substance is still very challenging.”