Theresa May will promise to honour European Arrest Warrants post-Brexit
The PM is hoping the pledge will help Britain secure a better trade deal
THERESA May will again risk Brexiteers’ anger this week by pledging to keep Britain within EU-run police agreements.
The PM will flesh out her vision for close security cooperation after we leave the EU during a speech in a bid to sweeten a good trade deal.
It has emerged that her speech in Munich on Saturday will include a declaration that the UK will keep the European Arrest Warrant as well as Europol membership.
No10 hopes a big offer on defence and security will split Eastern and Nordic states from France and Germany’s tough line on trade barriers.
But hard Brexiteers lead by Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg oppose the arrest arrangement, that allows foreign cops to ask UK police to seize suspects for them.
They claim it leads to British citizens being sent abroad on flimsy evidence, and is also watched over by euro judges.
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Former Brexit minister David Jones said: “Whatever the utility of the arrest warrant it is imperative to ensure that the jurisdiction of the ECJ does not prevail”.
But Mrs May is expected to argue that British cops are also using the EAW more as it’s a handy crime fighting tool.
In 2016-17, 196 people were arrested using the warrant in Europe on a British request, up from 150 the year before.