Labour’s knives out

– Britain’s main opposition Labour Party is set to vote down any deal Prime Minister Theresa May clinches with the European Union (EU) and is open to a second referendum with the option of staying in the bloc, its Brexit spokesperson Keir Starmer said yesterday.

With just over six months until Britain leaves the EU, May has yet to reach a deal with Brussels on the terms of the divorce and her plan for future trade ties has been rebuffed by both the EU and lawmakers in her own party.

Labour has listed six tests it would apply to a Brexit deal, including whether it ensured a strong future relationship with the EU and delivered the same benefits Britain has as a member of the bloc’s single market and customs union. Starmer said May was on course to fail these tests.

“Everybody recognises the talks are going badly and it looks as though we’re heading for a bad deal or even no deal,” he told BBC TV. “The Labour Party are going to vote down a bad deal or we’re going to vote down no deal because that is not good for our country nor is it what people voted for.”

In a speech to his party’s annual conference, Starmer said the Conservative government does not have a credible plan for Brexit and that there was no majority in parliament for May’s so-called “Chequers” proposals, which envisage close ties with the EU in the trade of goods.

Labour could play a decisive role in whether any Brexit deal is approved by parliament.