The Labour leader vowed to get a better trade agreement with the EU as he prepares to meet the French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee in Paris this week
Keir Starmer has said he will attempt a major rewrite of Boris Johnson’s “thin” Brexit deal with the EU if Labour wins power.
The Labour leader vowed to seek a “closer” trading agreement with the bloc as he seeks to bolster the UK’s sluggish economic growth. The comments from the Labour leader came amid a series of meetings with international leaders, including Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.
He is also expected to meet French President Emmanuel Macron – a key figure in the Brexit negotiations in the last several years – on Tuesday as Labour continues to enjoy a double-digit polling lead over the Tories. Mr Starmer has repeatedly ruled out re-joining the EU’s single market or customs union, but has been critical of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement negotiated by the disgraced ex-PM Mr Johnson in 2021.
With the agreement up for review in 2025, Mr Starmer told the Financial Times it was an “important” moment to reset relations. He said: “Almost everyone recognises the deal Johnson struck is not a good deal – it’s far too thin. As we go into 2025 we will attempt to get a much better deal for the UK.”
Mr Starmer said he was confident a better deal could be secured from Brussels, saying: “I do think we can have a closer trading relationship as well. That’s subject to further discussion.” He added: “We have to make it work. That’s not a question of going back in. But I refuse to accept that we can’t make it work. I think about those future generations when I say that.
“I say that as a dad. I’ve got a 15-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. I’m not going to let them grow up in a world where all I’ve got to say to them about their future is, it’s going to be worse than it might otherwise have been. “I’ve got an utter determination to make this work.”
According to the Financial Times, Mr Starmer wants to see closer ties with the EU on security and research. In a speech last year at the Irish Embassy in central London Mr Starmer set out his initial plan to “make Brexit work” with proposals to seek a new veterinary agreement
Over the weekend Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy also proposed regular meetings between the UK and EU if Labour wins power. He told the Observer: “A UK that is isolated and missing is felt across the world. It is definitely the case that the international community want Britain back,” he said.
“There have always been two visions of Britain. Great Britain, outward looking, internationalist, connected. And Little England, which is unfortunately what is being pursued by Rishi Sunak.”
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