According to the spokesman of UK Prime Minister Theresa May, "While we are pursuing a bold and deep future partnership with the EU, with a customs relationship which is as frictionless as possible, we also crucially are taking back control of our trade."
He added that the UK prime minister has full confidence in Finance Minister Hammond.
The UK cabinet is fully signed up to May's Brexit strategy, he added.
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According to UK Brexit Secretary David Davis, Britain will only partially adopt the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) as the deal does not do much for the country.
In late March, UK Prime Minister Theresa May officially invoked Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, launching the country's EU withdrawal process. The second phase of EU-UK negotiations, which is due to be completed by March 30, 2019, is expected to start in March and focus on the transition period in EU-UK relations after Brexit, and their future long-term trade and security cooperation.
In 2016, the UK government issued its strategy, which envisages an exit from the EU Single Market, and a goal to pursue a new strategic partnership with the EU aimed at the freest possible trade in goods and services and the UK's regained control over its borders.
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However, a recent poll for Left Foot Forward media outlet has recently revealed that only 16 percent of respondents said that the United Kingdom should quit the Single Market, while 24 percent were reluctant to respond to this question.
The so-called soft Brexit implies that the United Kingdom will remain close to the arrangements with the bloc, accept the four freedoms of the Single Market — goods, capital, services and labor — and continue allowing EU nationals to live and work in the United Kingdom. A hard Brexit will result in new trade deals, London losing access to EU Single Market, and control over immigration from the European Union to the United Kingdom.
