Labour opens door to single market during transition period
Labour has announced it would keep Britain in the EU’S single market and customs union – and accept continued freedom of movement – during a transition period after March 2019.
Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer also indicated that the party is ready to negotiate new single market and customs union terms which the UK could sign up to on a permanent basis, but made clear that any such deal would have to give Britain more control over migration.
The shift was announced as Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn came under increased pressure from some within his party to adopt a more proeu stance – but there was also a warning of a backlash from the one-third of Labour supporters who voted for Brexit in last year’s referendum.
Sir Keir said Labour was putting no time-frame on a Brexit transition, which would be “as short as possible, but as long as is necessary” and would be timelimited in order to prevent it becoming “a kind of neverending purgatory”.
He wrote: “Labour would seek a transitional deal that maintains the same basic terms that we currently enjoy with the EU. That means we would seek to remain in a customs union with the EU and within the single market during this period. It means we would abide by the common rules of both.”
Looking ahead to the eventual permanent settlement, Sir Keir added: “We will always put jobs and the economy first. That means remaining in a form of customs union with the EU is a possible end destination for Labour, but that must be subject to negotiations.
“It also means that Labour is flexible as to whether the benefits of the single market are best retained by negotiating a new single market relationship or by working up from a bespoke trade deal.”
The SNP’S Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, MP, said that Sir Keir’s policy merely meant Labour delaying departure from the market. Mr Blackford said: “Labour still face a cliff edge, only later than the Tories.”
And the Liberal Democrats said the move was “all spin and no principle”, pointing out that as recently as June Mr Corbyn sacked three shadow ministers for voting in favour of the single market.
A Conservative spokesman said: “The truth is Labour have no idea what they want and this is a weak attempt to kick the can down the road. They have no vision for what Britain should look like outside the EU.”