I am grateful to my hon. Friend; he is of course correct on all counts.

Indeed, the Government listened very carefully when the House passed the so-called Brady amendment and have pursued the strands of work t

My hon. Friend has long been a keen student of these issues.

I have not been seeking to blame anybody.

I can agree with the hon.

My hon. Friend knows the Government’s position.

I have not yet read the speech, so it would be wholly premature of me to assume what my right hon.

I note with care the hon. Gentleman’s position and I have observed what he is doing to represent his constituents.

The hon. Gentleman, with his deep knowledge of the border, speaks absolute truth when he talks about its complexity.

Well, well. My hon. Friend tempts me down an interesting path.