Tensions among senior Labour figures over how closely Britain should seek to align itself with the EU_Nhy
Senior Labour figures are divided over how closely Britain should seek to align itself with the EU, the Mail can reveal.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is said to be pushing to lift trade barriers with Brussels. But other ministers and officials fear this will lead to Labour haemorrhaging support to Reform UK.
Sir Keir Starmer is pressing to reset the UK’s relationship with the EU, and on Monday he will become the first British leader since Brexit to attend a meeting of the European Council’s 27 EU leaders.
At an informal retreat in Brussels, the leaders will discuss defence and security cooperation over a working dinner. Then, on Tuesday, the Paymaster General and EU relations minister, Nick Thomas-Symonds, will hold talks with his EU counterpart Maros Sefcovic.
But the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, has been cautioning against efforts by Ms Reeves to unpick Brexit. ‘Rachel sees lifting trade barriers with the EU as a big opportunity for growth and is pushing hard to use this reset to make some real changes,’ the source said.
‘But Morgan is much more cautious about the politics of it all and the threat from Reform – he does not want to stretch those manifesto red lines that helped convince people Labour could be trusted with Brexit.
‘There is a real tension there between the two people closest to the PM, and no sign at the moment of how he plans to resolve it.’
Other Cabinet figures are wary of handing votes to Nigel Farage. One minister highlighted that Reform came second to Labour in 89 seats.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to be pushing for a closer relationship with Brussels and to lift trade barriers
But Sir Keir Starmer’s Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney (pictured) is cautioning against efforts to unpick Brexit, amid concerns it could hand votes to Nigel Farage
Having won back many Red Wall voters, they feared the party could lose them again if it is seen to be ‘undoing’ Brexit. But EU diplomats have warned that unless Sir Keir shows more ambition, his attempts to reset the relationship will do little to help the UK’s economy.
Yesterday Bloomberg reported that Britain is exploring a ‘slimmed-down’ version of the EU’s youth mobility scheme, allowing 18 to 30-year-olds from across the EU to move to the UK for a few years. Officials are apparently looking at ways to deliver on the EU demand while avoiding adding to net migration.
Tomorrow, the Prime Minister will host German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for talks, and a wider reset is likely to be discussed.
Yesterday was Brexit’s fifth anniversary, but Sir Keir failed to mark the occasion. Instead, a No 10 spokesman said: ‘We know we can do better to make Brexit work for the British people, that it’s in the UK’s national interest to have a more cooperative relationship with the EU.’
Elsewhere, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch dismissed Reform UK as a ‘protest party’ as its leader Mr Farage prepared to hold a rally in her constituency yesterday.
A new Techne UK poll showed Reform in second place with 24 per cent, one point ahead of the Tories on 23 per cent and two points behind Labour on 26 per cent. Asked about the poll, Mrs Badenoch said it wasn’t a surprise that ‘at the moment protest parties are gaining in the polls’.
