CORBYN’S BREXIT U-TURN BATTLE FOR BREXIT
He’s accused of ‘cynical betrayal’ after backing second referendum – and breaking manifesto vow
‘A hostage reading a ransom note’
JEREMy Corbyn was accused of a cynical betrayal of his Brexit promises last night as he threw his party’s support behind a second referendum.
In an extraordinary move, the Labour leader told his MPs the party was ready to back a second public vote to prevent a ‘damaging Tory Brexit’.
The party is likely to table a Commons amendment which would mean a referendum on whatever deal finally gets through Parliament. The other choice would be Remain – meaning the vote could overturn the result of the 2016 referendum.
Remainer Labour MPs were delighted, with one boasting: ‘There’s no turning back for Jeremy now.’ But the move was described as a ‘betrayal’ of Labour’s 2017 election manifesto promise to respect the referendum result, with Leave campaigners calling it ‘cowardly’.
Mr Corbyn was also accused of cynically announcing the move in a desperate effort to stem the tide of defections to the newly-formed Independent Group, which supports a second referendum.
And some in Labour fear that the decision could be disastrous in Leave- dominated constituencies in the North. Labour MP John Mann told Mr Corbyn: ‘In the Midlands and North of England this decision today will stop you from being prime minister.’
Mr Corbyn’s dramatic announcement was made just minutes before a meeting of the Parliamenendum tary Labour Party, which was expected to be a fractious one because of disagreements over anti-Semitism in the party.
He is known to be lukewarm to the idea of a second vote. One MP said that when the leader read out the statement: ‘It was a bit like watching a hostage read out a ransom note.’
One Conservative MP, Brexiteer Andrew Bridgen, said: ‘Jeremy Corbyn is cynically betraying his principles, his 2017 manifesto pledge a huge number of Labour voters.’
It is believed Labour will call for a Commons vote on a second refer- on March 12, two weeks before the planned date of Brexit.
However there was utter confusion last night about what the party would want on the ballot paper, with senior party figures at odds. Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry said: ‘We will have a referendum on whatever deal there is and Remain. There will be no Tory Brexit without there being a public vote.
‘I think it’s in Britain’s interest for us to remain in the EU – if there is a vote then I will be backing remain. So will Jeremy Corbyn.’
However, a senior Labour source then said that although Remain would be on the ballot paper, Mrs May’s deal would not.
He would not say what the other option would be – and even suggested there could be three options. No Deal would not be an option, however.
At the PLP meeting last night, Mr Corbyn told MPs that Labour will also back an attempt to block a No Deal Brexit, saying he will do everything in his power to prevent Britain leaving the European Union without a deal, and will back the Cooper-Letwin amendment to take the option off the table.
And he said Labour is ‘committed to also putting forward or supporting an amendment in favour of a public vote to prevent a damaging Tory Brexit’.
He said Labour will seek to enshrine the party’s five Brexit demands in law by tabling an amendment to the Government’s Brexit motion which is due to be debated on Wednesday.
The demands include a permanent and comprehensive customs union with the EU and close alignment with the single market, as well as a dynamic alignment on rights and protections and commitments on participation in EU agencies and funding programmes. If the plan is rejected, Labour will then support a second referendum.
Mr Corbyn said: ‘One way or another, we will do everything in our power to prevent No Deal and oppose a damaging Tory Brexit based on Theresa May’s overwhelmingly rejected deal. That’s why, in line with our conference policy, we are committed to also putting forward or supporting an amendment in favour of a public vote to prevent a damaging Tory Brexit being forced on the country.’
Remainers were delighted. Labour MP Peter Kyle, who supports a second vote, said: ‘There’s no turning back for Jeremy now.’ Colleague David Lammy said: ‘Jer-
emy Corbyn is today taking the first step to reunite our party by showing he is listening to our voters and members.’ Around 60 per cent of Labour voters supported Remain in 2016 and members are strongly in favour of staying in the EU.
But John Longworth, chairman of Leave Means Leave, lambasted ‘a cowardly decision from a man who should never be trusted with the premiership of this country.’
Labour MP Stephen Kinnock said: ‘I have deep reservations about having a referendum.
‘I think it is going to be deeply divisive. I think it would have a corrosive impact on the role and sovereignty of Parliament.’
Colleague Caroline Flint said there will ‘never be’ unity in the party if a second referendum goes ahead, and Lucy Powell warned that 25 Labour MPs will vote against another referendum.
Tory party chairman Brandon Lewis said: ‘Corbyn’s Labour have ripped up their promise to respect the referendum result and are now pursuing a divisive second referendum that would take us back to square one. Jeremy Corbyn is using Brexit to play his own political games.’
AMiD the wafting palms and opulence of Sharm el Sheikh, there was a distinct air of unease among eU leaders yesterday.
With the Brexit clock ticking relentlessly down, rising anxiety over the possibility of a No Deal Brexit was almost palpable.
irish premier Leo Varadkar (whose country would suffer most from a messy divorce), said it would be a ‘lose, lose, lose situation’.
Holland’s Mark Rutte likened it to ‘sleepwalking’ towards disaster, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel reportedly expressed her profound worries in a private meeting with Theresa May.
in normal circumstances, these growing fears should be a hugely powerful bargaining chip for the Prime Minister.
She has a tailor-made solution to the perils of No Deal, in the shape of her own withdrawal agreement.
if the eU wants to avert disaster, what its leaders should do is help her get it through the Commons by reworking the controversial irish backstop.
Unfortunately, these are not normal circumstances and her efforts are being hugely undermined at Westminster.
Led by Labour’s Yvette Cooper and Tory Sir Oliver Letwin, Remain-supporting MPs are plotting to take No Deal off the table via a motion extending Article 50 – the formal mechanism for our departure. This would delay Brexit indefinitely and transfer control of the withdrawal process from the Government to Parliament.
if the motion succeeds, Brussels negotiators would no longer have a hard deadline to meet. And with No Deal out of the equation, they may think that if they sit on their hands, their Brexit nightmare might simply disappear. Unsurprisingly, european Council President Donald Tusk enthusiastically supported the Cooper/Letwin motion yesterday, saying an extension of Article 50 was ‘the only rational solution’. But a solution for whom? And to what? A delay to allow implementation of an agreed deal may be sensible. A delay for its own sake is merely a recipe for even more procrastination and endless strife. it does nothing to solve the Westminster impasse.
And with cynical opportunism, Jeremy Corbyn added to the confusion yesterday by apparently committing Labour to a second referendum if no deal is agreed.
A lifelong eurosceptic, Mr Corbyn has consistently opposed a so-called People’s Vote and Labour’s 2017 manifesto specifically said the original referendum result would be honoured.
But his party is imploding around him, with Remainer MPs defecting and others threatening to follow. So he has done exactly what he and his acolytes constantly accuse the Tories of and put narrow party politics above the national interest.
Brussels will be thrilled by his Damascene conversion. Many Leave-voting Labour supporters, and their MPs, will curse him for his blatant duplicity.
Meanwhile, back in the world of grown-up politics, Mrs May has promised a meaningful vote on her deal on March 12 and urges the Commons to wait until she has negotiated changes to the backstop before rushing to judgment.
While many Labour MPs will spurn her request on principle, Tories on both sides of the argument should hold their nerve.
No one could be more concerned about the potentially calamitous effects of No Deal than the Mail. But we believe the best way of avoiding it is to get Mrs May’s deal over the line. Weakening her now could scupper it once and for all.
equally, hardliners should heed archBrexiteer Owen Paterson when he says the alternative may be Brexit in name only.
if they are to avoid the outcome they fear most, both camps must open their minds to compromise. in these hazardous times, they cannot allow their vision to be distorted by stubborn prejudice.