It's not Labour we should be blaming for Brexit betrayal
It's not Labour's fault that our previous government failed to do the necessary groundwork for Brexit to become a success, says Jonathan Saxty.
Despite reports this week that Labour rejected a free movement deal for young people with Spain, there remains considerable disquiet that Sir Keir Starmer's government is out to betray Brexit.
This, despite the fact the PM has said he cannot foresee circumstances whereby Britain would re-enter the single market or customs union.
There are concerns on the Brexit Right however that Sir Keir's triple meet-up with German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is about establishing closer ties between Brussels and Britain, with the UK set to unilaterally but informally agree to match EU regulations.
In spirit Labour is a Remainer party and its top brass never shared the Brexiteer sense that 'diverging' from the EU is in Britain's best interest. Harmonising veterinary standards on the proviso that London accepts the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice could be just the start of a bigger convergence.
But, let's get real, can we really blame Labour?
Unlike the Tories, Labour never denied being opposed to Brexit even if Sir Keir strikes a conciliatory tone on the subject. Far from maximising the advantages and realigning with the Commonwealth, the Tories eked out a few underwhelming trade deals and actually managed to jack immigration up to record levels.
Little wonder a country which has seen little benefit from leaving the EU is receptive to getting back into bed with Brussels. As with rolling back some pensioner benefits or forcing through much-needed house-building, Labour is merely doing what the majority of people think the Conservatives should have been doing in the first place.
Although the youth mobility scheme with Spain has been rejected for now, one can easily imagine Labour signing up to similar schemes to win hearts and minds among young people - who already back the party in large numbers - while using this as a cover to reduce immigration from outside Europe, a move likely to be popular on the Brexit Right anyway.
Labour has been the consistent party here, not the Tories, while Reform UK remains hugely disadvantaged by Britain's archaic first past the post system.
As I warned recently, a Reform-Tory alliance may be the only way to prevent ten years of Labour. But, regardless, if Labour can achieve some breakthrough with Brussels - off the back of a Brexit legacy which, to most Brits, has been a complete waste of time anyway - then Sir Keir's party is likely to bake in a decade in power whatever the weather.
It never had to be this way. Britain could have maximised the advantages of Brexit, becoming a high-tech superpower and magnet for global capital, including from Europe.
The UK could and should have got back into bed with the Commonwealth, not least the Realm countries of Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
Instead, what the Conservatives pulled off was perhaps the biggest fudge in modern British history, and created a sense among a sceptical public that leaving the EU was pointless, if not outright harmful.
No wonder Labour feels that, while it must move slowly, it has the opportunity to start to unpick Brexit and get Britain back in through the back door. The fault for this lies not with the new government but with the previous one, which failed in the most spectacular way to honour the will of the British people and lay the groundwork for future prosperity.
