Labour preparing to vote against Theresa May’s failed Brexit deal

• ·       Keir Starmer MP, Shadow Brexit Secretary, to announce that Labour is preparing to vote against Theresa May’s Brexit deal, as new analysis reveals the Chequers’ agreement cannot meet Labour’s six tests

• ·       He will commit Labour to vote down a blind Brexit that risks the UK jumping “into the unknown”

• ·       Starmer will warn that the Tories’ chaotic handing of the Brexit negotiations is putting the country’s future prosperity at risk

• ·       “The party that once promised to fix the roof while the sun was shining now seems intent on burning the whole house down.”

Keir Starmer will tomorrow (Tuesday) formally announce that the Labour Party is preparing to vote down Theresa May’s Brexit deal when it is brought before Parliament later this year.

Speaking at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, Starmer will confirm that the Government’s Brexit deal has yet to meet the Labour Party’s six tests – despite Theresa May promising two years ago that she was “determined to meet” them.

The announcement comes as Labour publishes new analysis about how the Tories’ Brexit proposals are failing to meet the six tests.

The analysis reveals the Chequers’ proposals currently put jobs, the economy, people’s livelihoods and no hard border in Northern Ireland at risk.

On the Government’s approach to Brexit, Keir Starmer MP, Labour’s Shadow Brexit Secretary, is expected to say: 

“Just when we need a strong government, what do we see from the Tories? Division, chaos and failure.

“No credible plan for Brexit. No solution to prevent a hard border in Ireland. And no majority in Parliament for the Chequers proposals.

“A Tory civil war that has gone on for years, now threatens our future prosperity. The party that once promised that it would fix the roof while the sun was shining is now intent on burning the whole house down.

“So, I’ve got a message for the Prime Minister. ‘If your party wants to tear itself apart, that’s fine, but you’re not taking our country with you.’”

On how Labour will vote on Theresa May’s Brexit deal in Parliament, he will add:

“I know that people want clarity on where we stand on the deal now.

“Because some have said Labour could vote for any deal the Tories reach. Some have said we may abstain. Some have said we may support a vague deal – a ‘blind Brexit’ – that gives no detail about the terms of our future relationship.

“So, let me be very clear - right here, right now: If Theresa May brings back a deal that fails our tests – and that looks increasingly likely - Labour will vote against it. No ifs, no buts.

“And if the Prime Minister thinks we’ll wave through a vague deal asking us to jump blindfolded into the unknown she can think again. You can’t meet Labour’s tests by failing to provide answers. We will vote down a blind Brexit.

“Let me be clear: this isn’t about frustrating the process. It’s about stopping a destructive Tory Brexit. It’s about fighting for our values. And about fighting for our country.”

Ends

Notes to editors

• ·       In March 2017, Keir Starmer set out the six tests which the Labour Party would judge the Government’s Brexit deal against. The six tests, which were based on the commitments Theresa May and her Cabinet colleagues had promised to deliver as part of the Article 50 negotiations, are:

1. 1.   Does it ensure a strong and collaborative future relationship with the EU?
2. 2.   Does it deliver the “exact same benefits” as we currently have as members of the Single Market and Customs Union?
3. 3.   Does it ensure the fair management of migration in the interests of the economy and communities?
4. 4.   Does it defend rights and protections and prevent a race to the bottom?
5. 5.   Does it protect national security and our capacity to tackle cross-border crime?
6. 6.   Does it deliver for all regions and nations of the UK?

Source: https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files/events/2017-03-27-StarmerPREP.pdf

• ·       The Prime Minister said she was “determined to meet” the tests. She told the House of Commons on 29 March 2017: “I have been looking at those tests because, actually, there are principles that the Government have, time and time again, said we are determined to meet.”

Source: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2017-03-29/debates/A6DFE4A0-6AB1-4B71-BF25-376F52AF3300/Article50 

• ·       Labour has today published new analysis of how the Government’s current Brexit plan is performing against these tests: (See attached PDF: ‘Theresa May’s failed Brexit plan’.)