We must fight to keep manufacturing jobs in the UK and keep voters’ trust by delivering a fair Brexit deal and immigration system
Jeremy Corbyn says he would have campaigned to stay in the EU, promise another referendum or uphold the referendum — the Conservatives however, cannot undo this deal now
THERESA May won the no confidence vote last week – but now has to sell her Brexit deal to MPs all over again.
Whether or not she wins clarifications from Brussels about the backstop, the deal won’t fundamentally change. That would not have changed if she lost and the Tories picked a new leader.
And whatever Jeremy Corbyn says, it wouldn’t change if there was an election and he moved into Number 10 either.
You can’t rule anything out for certain, but most MPs reckon an election is the most unlikely outcome of all.
That’s why calling a vote of confidence in the government is a waste of time. Tory MPs won’t risk it and the Ulster Unionists know they will never be more powerful.
Anyway, Jeremy told Labour MPs to trigger Article 50 and set the clock ticking down to departure in March. There isn’t time for an election, the public expect MPs to sort it out and there’s no guarantee it would solve the problem.
I asked Jeremy this week what his policy would be if there was an election: would he campaign to stay in, promise another referendum or, after campaigning against the EU for decades, uphold the referendum - but he refused to give any answer at all.
And who can be certain he’d win? He should be miles ahead in the polls, but when asked who would make the best Prime Minister, the public still back Theresa May. In fact, in a two-horse race, he comes a distant third behind don’t know.
Let’s face facts: the EU isn’t waiting to give a different Prime Minister a better deal
Ian Austin
Jeremy seems to think he could negotiate to stay in the single market and customs union, but stop paying our contributions and still have a say over the rules. Who thinks we could get all the benefits without paying a penny?
Imagine asking to use a gym but refusing to join or even pay – and wanting a say in how it’s run!
Let’s face facts: the EU isn’t waiting to give a different Prime Minister a better deal. Whether it’s Boris Johnson or Jeremy Corbyn, they won’t roll over and give us everything we want.
It’s not only Theresa May who says it. Nor even just Juncker. Merkel says the deal can’t be changed.
Macron and Ireland’s Taoiseach say so too. Not one EU leader said they are open to renegotiating it.
In 2016, 60% of Labour constituencies voted for Brexit. Labour heartlands like Sunderland, Hartlepool, Bolsover, Wakefield or Doncaster all voted leave. Here in the West Midlands, people voted to leave in some of the highest numbers of all.
In 2017, our manifesto promised to uphold the referendum – no ifs, no buts, no second referendum.
Ordinary, decent people who voted leave believed us. Lots of people voted leave to make politicians sit up and listen.
With trust in politics at an all-time low, we can’t discount that lightly. Another referendum would take months and there’s no agreement on what the questions would be.
I’ve listened to lots of people in Dudley and there’s not much evidence people have changed their minds. Even if they had, who thinks a narrow remain vote would settle it?
That’s why I think our choice is between Theresa May’s deal or leaving with no deal at all. I joined the Labour Party to fight for ordinary people and their jobs must come first.
This week I met Jaguar Land Rover, a world-beating British company employing 40,000 British workers.
Like manufacturers up and down the country they believe a no deal Brexit would threaten their business and the jobs of people who depend on it.
Delays at ports will cost jobs. Thousands of parts go into every car – some cross the channel several times before the car is complete.
They all have to arrive at plants in the Midlands or on Merseyside at exactly the right moment and in the right order. Half the parts for cars made in Britain typically come from Europe.
It would be great if they were made here, but that can’t happen quickly. Worse, the supply chain that has grown up here in the last decade could decide to leave if we get the wrong deal.
Leaving on WTO terms would also put people out of work too because tariffs would increase the price of cars built in Britain and sold in Europe by ten per cent.
For all its flaws, the Brexit deal meets these priorities.
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It commits to maintain ‘high standards of free and fair trade and workers’ rights, consumer and environmental protection’, and a level playing-field on regulations.
And it ensures that there is no hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland.
There will never be a perfect deal. But if we want to avoid trust in politics being damaged even more, and if we want to protect jobs and standards, we must think long and hard before rejecting the only deal on offer.