Keir Starmer's bid to slap EU rules on Britain using Henry VIII powers 'blown out the water' with 'stunning' chart

Susanna Siddell
Wed, 15 Apr 2026 23:01:02 +0000
Membership

Sir Keir Starmer's bid to slap European Union regulations on Britain using Henry VIII powers has been "blown out the water" by damning new data.

The Prime Minister has received criticism after plans to sign the UK up to the Brussels bloc's food and drink laws are set to be unveiled in the upcoming King's Speech.

The same bill will also hand ministers powers to rubber-stamp secondary legislation under "Henry VIII powers", once a deal between the UK and EU is reached.

Sir Keir, along with his Chancellor Rachel Reeves, has regularly pushed the claim the economy's deterioration should be blamed on a number of issues – from the 14 years' of Tory government to Donald Trump's presidency.

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However, Ms Reeves has also attempted to dodge accountability by blaming the public's 2016 decision to leave the EU.

As a result, Labour has pushed for a closer relationship with EU member states, despite the public voting against the move 10 years ago.

At the start of the month, when Sir Keir held a conference to discuss the economic damage by the Iran war, he said Brexit did "deep damage to our economy".

The claim formed part of his argument that "our long-term national interest requires closer partnership with our allies in Europe" - including "closer economic cooperation".

But a chart whipped up by Facts4EU has revealed the UK has not suffered any damage from Brexit.

The analysis compares the UK economy with the EU's top five economies over the past decade – with each nation following the same pattern.

The chart marks the GDP of each nation in relation, showing the UK's $3,814billion in comparison to Germany's $5,106billion in 2025.

France is just behind on $3,801billion and Italy, Spain and the Netherlands trailing behind.

After the public voted to rescind membership of the bureaucratic body, the graph reveals there is not any "deep damage", excluding the pandemic era.

From the six nations, the UK is the second-largest economy, behind Germany and just ahead of France, the OECD data analysis shows.

Deputy leader of Reform UK Richard Tice told GB News: "Sir Keir and friends seem to think if they tell the public a big enough whopper, and repeat it often enough, the public will be fooled.

"We think people are smarter than that. And now there’s one chart that totally destroys what little credibility this Government still had.

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"The whole justification for Labour’s flagship bill in the King’s speech next month has just been blown out of the water by this stunning chart from the Facts4EU think tank."

The "reset" legislation is expected to be unveiled in the King's Speech on May 13. Such legislation will then follow the regular parliamentary process.

Labour, armed with its current plans, will revive 76 EU directives while seeking closer alignment with European member states, which Ms Reeves insisted was in the "national interest".

Speaking at a conference last month, the Chancellor said specific unique industries would stay under British law. However, she added these would be the "exception, not the norm".

London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has even suggested the party should campaign to rejoin the bloc at the next general election.

Meanwhile, other key Cabinet figures, such as Peter Kyle, have been more reserved in their support for the closer alignment.

The Business Secretary said No10's previous refusal to join the EU single market and customs union was "for the moment we're in".

On the "reset" bill, a Government spokesman said: "The bill will go through Parliament in the normal way. Any new treaties or deals with the EU will also face parliamentary scrutiny, and Parliament will have a role in approving new EU laws required under those deals via secondary legislation.

"This will allow us to deliver a food and drink trade deal worth £5.1billion a year, backing British jobs and slashing costly red tape for our farmers, producers and businesses."