Labour’s Corbyn backs 2nd Brexit referendum

Pro-Brexit movement splinters

LIVERPOOL, England, Sept 23, (Agencies): British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn said on Sunday he would back a second Brexit referendum if his Labour Party votes to pursue the move, heaping pressure on Prime Minister Theresa May, whose plans for a divorce deal with the EU have hit an impasse.

Corbyn, a veteran eurosceptic, has resisted growing demands to back a new “People’s Vote” on the decision to quit the European Union, keen to keep those party members on board who voted in favour of Brexit at a 2016 referendum.

But the political landscape has changed since May’s plans for Brexit – the biggest shift in British policy for more than four decades – were resoundingly rebuffed by the EU on Thursday, with any outcome of the negotiations more uncertain than ever.

With talk of a new election swirling after May’s “Chequers” plan was all but shredded at an EU summit last week and chances of a disorderly departure that could damage the economy rising, the opposition party is under pressure to set the Brexit agenda.

At Labour’s annual conference in the northern city of Liverpool, Corbyn, who in 1975 voted “No” to Britain’s membership of the then-European Community, said he would act on the result of a debate in Labour on a second Brexit vote. But he was clear that he preferred a new election.

“Our preference would be for a general election and we can then negotiate our future relationship with Europe but let’s see what comes out of conference,” he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, saying Labour was ready to vote against any deal.

“Obviously I’m bound by the democracy of our party.”

Meanwhile, The grassroots campaign to steer Britain into a more radical departure from the EU is at a crossroads: time is short, and the self-styled “People’s Army” of activists that was a driving force in bringing about Brexit is splintering.

Britain is due to exit the European Union in March, leaving it heading into an uncertain future with its biggest economic and political realignment in more than four decades.

To the frustration of many among the 17.4 million Britons who in 2016 voted for Brexit in a referendum, Prime Minister Theresa May is seeking a departure that prioritises economic links, keeping the country aligned with many EU rules. The exit plans are far from finalised. But the UK Independence Party (UKIP) is still struggling to be heard by decision makers and - with its popular support and political influence waning - is split over how best to apply pressure for a change of course.

“It’s gone. We have no leverage,” said UKIP veteran Gawain Towler told Reuters at its annual conference in Birmingham.

“We could force the referendum, we could help win the referendum, but we can’t deliver it because we’re not in government. All we can do is wave our shrouds in the background.”

Some, like Towler, are committed to fighting from the fringes with UKIP for their dream of a return to British sovereignty.

Others are defecting - or attempting to defect - to May’s Conservative Party with a view to installing a leader more in tune with their less integrationist vision of Brexit.

Corbyn