Michael Sercan Daventry
10 March 2016•Update: 18 March 2016
LONDON
British Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday accused Brexit supporters of treating possible job losses as “a price worth paying”, in comments likely to raise tensions between his ministers.
Cameron said as many as 3 million British jobs are linked to the European single market and that a withdrawal from the EU carries economic risks.
But his comments were dismissed by Chris Grayling, a minister in Cameron’s Cabinet, as “simply not true”.
Speaking at a car factory in northern England, Cameron said: “For those who advocate leaving, lost jobs and a dented economy might be collateral damage, or a price worth paying.
“For me, they're not. They never are because there's nothing more important than protecting people's financial security. That's why I believe we are better off in.”
He added that even supporters of a Brexit admitted it could have heavy consequences: “They've said it might lead to job losses. That there would be dislocation, uncertainties and costs. That there would definitely be some problems, even pain.
“That they cannot offer any guarantee that jobs wouldn't be lost. That there could be higher tariffs. And that there would be an economic shock.”
But in the latest indication of bitter diversions within the Cabinet, Grayling told BBC radio on Thursday morning that Cameron’s claims were "simply not true".
"It is about creating the opportunity for more jobs. European Union regulations cost jobs in this country. They increase costs for business. They make it less desirable to employ people in the UK," he said.
