Labour seeks to block possibility of ‘no deal’ Brexit

Today Keir Starmer will reveal Labour’s plan to block a ‘no deal’ Brexit by tabling an amendment to the EU withdrawal bill and working with colleagues from other parties.

Marking a year to go until Brexit, the shadow Brexit secretary will use a speech in Birmingham to announce Labour’s plan to shift the balance of power on the final deal by prising it from the government’s grip and handing it to parliament.

Starmer will unveil a Labour amendment to the EU withdrawal bill, which will be tabled in the House of Lords on Thursday.

It would ensure that Theresa May’s final Brexit deal is voted down in October, MPs could decide how to proceed with Brexit. The ultimate aim is to prevent a ‘no deal’ outcome.

Today, Starmer is expected to say: “Labour has adopted a considered approach to Brexit based on the national interest and rooted in our values of internationalism, solidarity and equality.

“A belief that we achieve more together than we do alone. That’s why the first of the six tests I set out a year ago was that the final deal must ensure a strong and collaborative future relationship with the EU.

“Not just in trade and security, but in so much more – in research, technology, arts, culture, science and medicine. Labour’s approach to Brexit will protect that. We completely reject the notion that Brexit should make Britain a more insular country or cut ourselves off from our allies.

“The approach Jeremy Corbyn set out last month in Coventry had those core values at its heart and a strong emphasis that Labour’s approach will always put jobs and the economy first.

“There is no clearer demonstration of that than our commitment to negotiate a new comprehensive UK-EU Customs Union and a strong new relationship with the Single Market that retains the benefits.”

In March, Starmer set out six tests that the final deal would have to pass for Labour to support it. They include delivering the “exact same benefits” that we currently enjoy as members of the single market and customs union.