Monday, March 18, 2019
Corbyn could vote leave in new referendum
If there was any doubt where the Labour leader's sympathies lie on Brexit, he dispelled them this morning in an interview on Sky News when he told Sophy Ridge on Sunday that he could vote to leave the EU if there is another Brexit referendum.
The Independent reports that Corbyn told the interviewer that how he voted in any future referendum giving the British public a Final Say on Brexit would depend on the withdrawal deal which is on offer at the time.
The paper adds that the Labour leader gave a heavily caveated answer when asked if he was “enthusiastic” about the idea of a new referendum, and said that his party might back an amendment calling for one depending on its wording:
Asked if he would vote Remain in a new referendum, Mr Corbyn told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “It depends what the choice is in front of us. If we’ve got a good deal in which we can have a dynamic relationship with Europe ... then that might be a good way forward that unites the country.
“It depends what the relationship is that we’ve agreed in the future.”
Mr Corbyn’s front bench is in talks with Labour backbenchers Peter Kyle and Phil Wilson about potentially backing an amendment which would see a referendum called on a deal that is approved by parliament.
He explained that the amendment is being written and that he would need to see the exact wording before ordering whips to shepherd MPs into backing it.
In short, the Labour leader is continuing to sit on the fence, whilst giving tacit support to the Tories in their desire to leave the EU. It is now clear that:
The Independent reports that Corbyn told the interviewer that how he voted in any future referendum giving the British public a Final Say on Brexit would depend on the withdrawal deal which is on offer at the time.
The paper adds that the Labour leader gave a heavily caveated answer when asked if he was “enthusiastic” about the idea of a new referendum, and said that his party might back an amendment calling for one depending on its wording:
Asked if he would vote Remain in a new referendum, Mr Corbyn told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “It depends what the choice is in front of us. If we’ve got a good deal in which we can have a dynamic relationship with Europe ... then that might be a good way forward that unites the country.
“It depends what the relationship is that we’ve agreed in the future.”
Mr Corbyn’s front bench is in talks with Labour backbenchers Peter Kyle and Phil Wilson about potentially backing an amendment which would see a referendum called on a deal that is approved by parliament.
He explained that the amendment is being written and that he would need to see the exact wording before ordering whips to shepherd MPs into backing it.
In short, the Labour leader is continuing to sit on the fence, whilst giving tacit support to the Tories in their desire to leave the EU. It is now clear that:
- We cannot rely on Labour to give us a public vote on the final deal, and if they do they may seek to remove the remain option from the ballot paper.
- Corbyn sympathies are clearly with those wishing to leave the EU, and if there was a further plebiscite with remain as an option, we could not rely on him to support any campaign to stay within the EU
- The Liberal Democrats are the only UK-wide party committed to giving people a say on whether we accept May's flawed deal or stay in the EU, and who are committed to campaigning for the remain option.
Corbyn and Labour have failed as an opposition, and they have failed the UK by clinging to unachievable and self-interested objectives, whilst abandoning our long term interests as a member of the wider European Community.
