Dr Julian Lewis: Is not part of the problem that a lot of the people in charge of these negotiations do not accept the result of the referendum? Michel Barnier has been heard recently to say that negotiating with the British is like negotiating not with a country that is trying to leave the EU but with one that is applying to join it. I wonder why he feels like that.

[Sir Bernard Jenkin: Because too many people leading these negotiations do not have sufficient faith in the people, economy and future of this country. ... ]

* * *

Dr  Lewis: Is the hon. Lady [Kate Hoey] aware that when the Prime Minister came before the Liaison Committee a few days ago, I asked her nine times in seven minutes who would actually erect a border – whether the Irish would, whether the British would or whether the EU would send in its army to do it? She refused and declined to answer that question every time, because the answer is that no one would ever put it there.

[Kate Hoey: The right hon. Gentleman is right. The EU has said clearly that, even in a no-deal situation and under WTO rules, there would not need to be a hard border, and therefore there is no need for a backstop. Anything that the Prime Minister comes back with – more reassurance, more letters and more white bits of paper – will not be accepted unless it is in a legally binding agreement. The political choice was taken by the Government to treat the border as an insoluble problem. ... ]