Corbyn facing new moves for second poll on Brexit

CAMPAIGNERS CALLING for a second referendum will seek to challenge Jeremy Corbyn’s Brexit policy by attempting to secure a motion on the issue at the Labour Party conference, according to a leaked memo.

People’s Vote wants MPs and activists to submit a motion calling for a referendum on the final deal the Government reaches with the EU before Britain leaves in March.

At present it is not Labour Party policy to support a second referendum on the deal.

But the leaked memo, seen by the Press Association, states the cross-party group is not trying to undermine Mr Corbyn’s leadership of the party over the issue. It says: “Whatever views people have about the overall direction of the Labour Party, this campaign is not about Jeremy Corbyn and we must not – will not – use it to damage or undermine the party’s leadership or attack them personally.”

However, the draft contemporary resolution for Labour’s conference in September states that the party can give the public a “clear opportunity to participate in critical decisions”.

It notes: “Conference believes that if the Government’s proposed deal is unsatisfactory then the people should be allowed to express their view in a public vote on Brexit. The Labour movement can then unite behind Jeremy Corbyn’s determination to fight the Tories on a hard Brexit.”

The memo, by Tom Baldwin, the campaign group’s director of communication, praises “real signs of movement” from the Labour frontbench on a second referendum.

Mr Baldwin said: “It’s vital that people recognise that this is such a huge issue for our country, for the next generation, for our vital public services, for our jobs, that it’s not something that should be used for any other objective.”