The 10th anniversary of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union is two days away – and with Keir Starmer’s premiership in peril, the old wounds have burst open again.
On Channel 4 News on Saturday, two Labour MPs took opposing sides in what has become an open battle for the future of the party. Joe Morris, the Labour MP for Hexham, is backing Wes Streeting. Perran Moon, the Labour MP for Camborne and Redruth, is backing Keir Starmer. Asked whether the prime minister’s position has become untenable, they offered sharply different answers.
“With Starmer’s premiership in peril, rows over Brexit red lines have burst open as Labour MPs take sides.”
Until recently, Westminster wanted to talk about anything other than Brexit. The chaos of the 2016 referendum and the years that followed – shock resignations, late-night votes, broken promises – made it a toxic subject. Labour, still reeling from its catastrophic 2019 election defeat under Jeremy Corbyn, was desperate to end internal divisions. Under Starmer, the former shadow Brexit secretary, a new position was thrashed out: fix Boris Johnson’s botched deal, but no return to the EU, the single market or the customs union. These were the red lines in Labour’s 2024 manifesto, and the promise to “make Brexit work”.
In his early days in No 10, Starmer put in the hard yards – and air miles – patching up relations with European allies after years of fractious Tory rule. The “reset” followed. Ahead of the second major UK-EU summit in July, the government’s focus remains on tweaking the relationship. A youth mobility deal, allowing under-30s to live, work and study in each other’s countries, could be agreed.
It was only last year Labour felt confident enough to punch at the Brexit wound again. Chancellor Rachel Reeves warned the economic fallout was having a greater impact than first forecast. But the red lines remained, and the issue appeared settled.
Now, with Starmer’s premiership in peril, rows over the future of Brexit have burst into the open. Wes Streeting has suggested the UK should rejoin … the question remains incomplete but the signal is clear. Pro-EU Labour members will be asking: will the UK seek renegotiated access to the customs union or single market? Will freedom of movement be accepted? Will the government seek to rejoin the EU long-term? These are the questions a leadership contest and “battle of the ideas” would force into the open.