Labour shifts stance, backs new Brexit vote
Print Edition
In a significant shift, Britain’s main opposition Labour Party said yesterday that Britain’s next prime minister should hold a referendum on whether to leave the European Union or remain in the bloc.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the party would campaign to stay in the EU, if a referendum was called by whoever succeeds Prime Minister Theresa May. She announced her resignation last month after failing to get Parliament to back her divorce deal with the bloc.
Lawmakers Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt are competing to replace May as Conservative Party leader and prime minister. The winner of the contest is due to take office later this month and will have barely more than three months to win support for a Brexit deal before Britain’s scheduled October 31 departure date.
In a letter to party members, Corbyn said that the new prime minister “should have the confidence to put their deal, or no-deal, back to the people in a public vote.”
“In those circumstances, I want to make it clear that Labour would campaign for Remain against either no-deal or a Tory deal that does not protect the economy and jobs.”
Labour’s opponents — and many supporters — have accused the party of dithering over Brexit for fear of alienating voters on either side of the national divide over Europe. Corbyn, a longtime critic of the EU, has resisted calls for a second referendum, saying Labour must respect voters’ 2016 decision to leave.
The left-of-center party has previously not only rejected May’s deal, but also ruled out leaving the EU without an agreement, and called for an election that the party hopes will bring a Labour government to power.
But the party’s poor showing in recent local and European elections suggests Labour is losing support to parties, including the Liberal Democrats and the Greens that advocate remaining in the EU.
Corbyn’s letter clarifies the party’s position — up to a point. It’s still unclear what Labour would do about Brexit if it formed a government.
Labour lawmaker Hilary Benn, who heads Parliament’s Brexit Committee, said: “This is a very significant moment.”
“We saw what a lack of clarity did to Labour in the European elections. We got 14 percent of the vote,” he said.
Tory contenders Hunt and Johnson were due to square off later yesterday in their only head-to-head debate in the campaign. Both vow to succeed where May failed and take Britain out of the EU — even if that means leaving without an agreement on divorce terms and future relations.
Most businesses and economists think a no-deal Brexit would plunge Britain into recession as customs checks take effect at United Kingdom ports and tariffs are imposed on trade between the UK and the EU.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
