Keir Starmer MP, Shadow
Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, speaking at the Labour Party Conference in Brighton today, said:
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Thank you conference. Thank you to everyone who has taken part this
morning. Thank you also to Labour’s fantastic Shadow Brexit team: Jenny
Chapman; Paul Blomfield; Matt Pennycook; Dianne Hayter; Karin Smyth; Emma
Hardy; and Jess Morden. ardBelieve you me, they could all have chosen easier
jobs in the last year.
What a year it has been. Article 50
triggered. A snap election. It was meant to be a coronation, but it left us
with a broken Government. Too weak to govern. Too divided to negotiate Brexit. Constructive
ambiguity is now official government policy.
It would be funny, if it wasn’t so
tragic.
Britain’s
place in the world is at stake. People’s jobs are at stake. People’s mortgages
are at stake. People’s futures are at stake. And who are the authors of this
Tory tragedy?
First,
David Cameron, who gambled his country, because he couldn’t hold his party
together. Then, Boris Johnson, standing in front of his red bus, with a lie on
the side – a false promise of £350m a week for the NHS. Ruthless about his own
ambitions, but reckless about our country.
Now
Theresa May, robotically marching towards an extreme Brexit – focussed on her
own survival not the national interest.
Maybe the Tories can afford this disastrous approach to Brexit. Maybe
the Tories would benefit from a Brexit of deregulation, where rights are put at
risk.
But
you know, and I know, that millions of working people cannot. Whether
you’re in the front seat with Theresa May, or in the backseat with Boris
Johnson, there’s nothing patriotic about joy-riding our country’s economy off a
cliff.
This
has to stop. It’s time for a different approach. So let me share with you
Labour’s approach. An approach that is both democratically legitimate and
economically sensible. That respects the referendum result and puts jobs
and the economy first. An
approach rooted in our core values. Values that bind us together. Labour
values.
Values of
internationalism: we have always been an internationalist party; reaching out
to Europe and the rest of the world rather than turning inwards. Values of co-operation, solidarity, and a
simple belief that we achieve more together than we do alone. An unflinching commitment to human rights, the rule of law, rights at
work and the protection of our environment. Fairness,
equality and social justice in our economy and in our society.
As we exit the EU, we should not abandon these values. On the
contrary, these values should drive everything we do in these uncertain times. That is why, over
the summer, Labour reached an agreed position that transitional arrangements on
the same basic terms that we currently have with the EU are in the national
interest. For Labour that means that during the transitional phase, we would
remain in a customs union with the EU and within the Single Market.
The
Government on the other hand spent their summer squabbling in public. So
dysfunctional had it all become, that the Prime Minister had to fly to Florence
on Friday, only to accept Labour’s position on transitional arrangements. Let’s
see if that survives contact with Tory party conference.
But
let’s not be fooled by what the Prime Minister said in Florence. All she has
done is to delay the cliff edge. All her ideological red-lines remain. She
still prioritises arbitrary immigration targets over jobs and the economy. She has no answer to fundamental questions in
Northern Ireland. And she still insists – in spite of all the warnings – that
no deal is a viable option.
The
Labour Party rejects that approach. If we were in Government, we would build a
new progressive partnership with the EU. We would negotiate a final deal that
ensured continued co-operation and collaboration with our EU partners in all
fields. And a final deal, that retained the benefits of the Customs Union and
the Single Market. Options for achieving this should not be swept off the
table.
Subject,
of course to negotiations, remaining in a form of customs union with the EU is
a possible end destination for Labour.
We
are also flexible as to whether the benefits of the Single Market are best
retained by negotiating a new Single Market relationship or by working up from
a bespoke trade deal. No rash, ideological red lines preventing a sensible
deal. No fantastical, ‘blue sky’ proposals.
A pragmatic approach. Labour are now the grown-ups in the room. We stand
ready to take charge of the negotiations. Not acting for narrow political gain.
But in the national interest.
Conference,
the way the Tories are handling Brexit tells you a lot about their competence –
or should I say incompetence. But it
also tells you about their character. About their dogmatic disregard of the
national interest; about their sheer sense of entitlement; about their
post-imperial delusions; about their willingness to put other people’s jobs at
risk.
Our
country today is so much better than our Government. This is a country yearning
for change. Theresa
May – and whichever Brexiteer replaces her – cannot deliver that change. The old
politics and the Tory old guard have had their day.
We need a transformative Labour Government. Not just
to break the impasse in Brexit negotiations and to deliver a progressive new
partnership with the EU – vital though that is.
But to
tackle the wider injustices and inequalities we see all around us. To give
hope that our society, our public services and our economy don’t have to be
like this. That we can build a better, fairer and more
inclusive Britain.
That’s why I came into politics. That is why you
are in this hall. It’s why Jeremy has been able to mobilise 600,000
members …and inspire the support of over 12 million people. It’s why the
clock is ticking for this Prime Minister and this Government.
We
have come a long way in the last year. Now is the time for us to lead. To bring
a divided country back together. To mend our broken politics. This is Labour’s
opportunity. This is Labour’s responsibility. And, working together, this
can be Labour’s achievement.
Delivering
a Government for the many, not the few.
Ends
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