Hilary Benn: I’m not standing to be leader of the Labour party

Hilary Benn today played down suggestions he could one day stand in a Labour leadership contest as he called on Theresa May not to use EU citizens as “bargaining chips” in Brexit talks.

The former shadow foreign secretary said the Brexit select committee – of which he is chair – unanimously agreed that EU nationals in Britain should be able to stay in Britain and that the government should follow their recommendation.

Speaking on Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Benn urged the government not to use EU citizens as a “bargaining chip” in the upcoming negotiations.

Last week, the government were defeated for the first time on the article 50 bill, in the Lords when a Labour amendment with cross-party support seeking to secure EU nationals residency rights was passed. This does not mean the end of the road on this issue, as it will now have to return to the house of commons .

Benn said: “nobody wants to be used as a bargaining chip, they don’t want to be used as a bargaining chip, this is about people and their lives.”

“I think if we lead by example I’m sure we’ll end up in the end with a deal where everybody gets to stay and that great uncertainty which is felt by those citizens, the Brits abroad and EU citizens here, will then be put on one side because we have got loads of other things to negotiate about with the 27 member states as we leave.”

Asked by Ridge about the comments he made about Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour party last summer, he said: “Well I don’t resile from what I said in the summer but there was then followed, as you know, by another leadership election and Labour party members decided to re-elect Jeremy Corbyn ”

“But I respect the outcome of that. Our job is to work together, we are clearly facing a very challenging situation as the Labour party, you look at our position in the opinion polls and how in the end are we going to change that?” he added.

“By being united but crucially arguing for the right things in relation to Brexit but also addressing the fundamental questions, Sophy, that face our society – what is the Labour party for? We have values and beliefs that are unchanging, that we apply them to a world that is changing. What are we going to do about the care of our elderly? This is what we need to be talking about, not about the internal workings of the party and who’s doing what because we have a job to work together.”

When asked if he would stand in another Labour leadership contest, he said: “Well I’m not standing to be leader of the Labour party and there isn’t a vacancy because Jeremy is the leader and has been re-elected by the party members.”