Labour risks losing support from both left and right over its stance on closer ties with Europe as Reform and the Tories accused the party of betraying Brexit, while the Lib Dems and Greens said No 10 was not going far enough.
The row has blown up after health secretary Wes Streeting appeared to float the idea of rejoining the customs union in an interview on Sunday.
The intervention was a departure from the policy laid down by Sir Keir Starmer, who has said that joining a customs union – which removes some trade barriers – is a “red line” which the Government will not cross.
Reform UK and the Conservatives say that a customs union mooted by Wes Streeting would be a “betrayal” of Brexit, but the Liberal Democrats and Greens are looking to peel voters away from Labour if the Government does not move closer to the EU.
Labour is being squeezed by Reform on the right which is leading in the polls, while a resurgent Green Party under the leadership of Zack Polanski is taking votes on the left.
Brexit reset is a ‘sell out’ Reform chief says
Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader, accused Labour of trying to unwind Brexit. He told The i Paper: “From day one of entering government, Labour has deployed every trick in the book to drag us back into the orbit of Brussels.
“Their so-called ‘reset’ was nothing less than a sell-out of the 2016 referendum, and now they’ve squandered a staggering £8 billion to crawl back into the Erasmus scheme. Germany is in recession. France is in trouble. Why would we want to get closer to failing economies?”
He added: “Labour’s Brussels-obsessed fanatics won’t rest until every hard-won Brexit freedom is handed back on a silver platter.
“Rejoining the customs union would be complete betrayal of the Brexit mandate, surrendering yet more sovereignty for EU red tape. Keir Starmer must unequivocally rule out rejoining the customs union. If he doesn’t, Reform UK will make him pay dearly at the ballot box.”
Dame Priti Patel, the Tories’ shadow foreign secretary, said that if Labour pursued a customs union the party would be “blatantly ignoring the democratic will of the British people, at their own peril”.
“The Conservatives will continue to hold them to account for their Brexit betrayal, and the public will not forget or forgive them at the next general election,” she said.
Labour too ‘half-hearted’ in reset, Greens argue
However, the Greens and Lib Dems accuse Labour of being half-hearted in its reset.
Siân Berry, the Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, told The i Paper: “Brexit has been all pain and no gain. The data is clear: our economy is weaker; people are poorer and life is harder for businesses of all sizes.
“Virtually no one believes that leaving the EU has been anything but a disaster, aside perhaps from the fraudsters in Reform and the Conservative Party who pushed this damaging national experiment.
“As the party of government, Labour has a responsibility to do all it can to mend our relationship with the EU. Joining a customs union would be a strong move, smoothing trade and boosting the economy.
“Ultimately the Green Party wants to see the UK become a fully-fledged member of the EU once again – 70 per cent of Labour, Lib Dem and Green voters think that the UK should open talks on rejoining the EU.”
Calum Miller MP, the Lib Dems foreign affairs spokesperson’s, said: “The Government’s continued dithering is only delaying what the Government knows to be true – negotiating a new customs union with the EU is the only way to end the economic fallout of the Conservatives botched Brexit deal.
He added: “Starmer must get his head out of sand and face the writing on the wall. An ambitious trade deal with Europe is the best opportunity we have to boost economic growth, create jobs, cut prices and free British business from reams of red tape.”
Row also dividing Labour
No 10 has said that its policy is to “strengthen” the UK’s relationship with the EU but has ruled out rejoining the customs union.
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In a speech earlier this month, Starmer said Britain had “redefined our bond with the EU, building a new partnership that benefits both sides, sticking to our red lines while supporting British businesses, making food cheaper, and slashing red tape.”
But the row is also dividing Labour. A senior Labour MP told The i Paper on Monday that rejoining the customs union was being widely discussed in the parliamentary party. “People want it. It would be a bold, sensible and grown-up way to get us out of the economic and political shit we’re in,” they said.
But a ‘Red Wall’ MP accused the Health Secretary of latching onto the issue to burnish his leadership credentials. “[Streeting] knows what he’s doing,” they said. “Playing to the membership ahead of a leadership contest. It’s all so transparent.”
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