Spoiler alert. “Will the next Labour Government take us back into the EU?” Emphatically not.
But that doesn’t mean we can’t and shouldn’t scrutinise what we have lost by leaving the European Union. It is part of how we learn from our mistakes.
In my view Brexit is the biggest act of national self-harm we as a nation we have ever inflicted upon ourselves. We have lost business, trade and collective wealth. We have ceded influence. We have blocked co-operation which was in our national interest. We have undermined our security.
Business sectors from fishing to aviation, farming to science report to being bogged down in red tape, struggling to recruit staff and racking up losses. All down to Brexit.
Bill Rammell is adamant that Labour will not put Britain back into the EU
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British exporting businesses have had to set up centres and depots in EU countries to avoid the red tape from Brexit, and the tax from these which previously would have gone to the UK exchequer now flow to foreign Governments, making us poorer.
We have a small boats crisis out of the EU, which didn’t exist when we were in the EU because then we had effective returns agreements with all other EU countries-an effective deterrent to the people traffickers.
And we have lost influence and leverage in international relations, because our conduct under this wretched Tory Government through and beyond Brexit has made the UK less trustworthy and dependable internationally.
All of which might argue in favour of seeking to rejoin the EU. But we can’t and a Labour Government will not try to.
Because Labour are democrats and respect the result of the Referendum. Because the deal we had in the EU-with the rebate (meaning our net contributions to the EU were minimal, despite the lies about £350million a week from the Leave campaign), and our agreed exclusion from the Euro and the Schengen border agreement-is no longer possible. And bluntly because there is absolutely no appetite among EU member states to have us back.
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So a Labour Government will not seek to take us back into the EU. But it will seek a closer and better relationship with the EU, which is manifestly in all our interests.
A Labour Government will want a structured dialogue, with regular Ministerial meetings, with the EU and EU member States. Such regular dialogues already exist with the US, Canada, Australia, Japan, even China for God’s sake. So of course, we need regular dialogue with our closest neighbours, with whom we still do over 50% of our trade.
A Labour Government will use the 2025 UK/EU trade agreement review to seek and establish a closer trading relationship with the EU in business, veterinary compliance, professional services, innovation, research and more.
A Labour Government will rightly seek border and migration co-operation with the EU to stem the flow of illegal migrants.
A Labour Government will seek a systematic co-operation with the EU through establishing a UK/EU defence and security pact to work together on logistics, cyber security and our mutual strategic security interests. More than ever important if Trump is re-elected, bringing a wrecking ball to NATO and our mutual security.
And a Labour Government will end the self-defeating, delusional Tory mindset which blames every problem we face on foreigners.
Under Labour we will be outside the EU, but will work closely on partnership, trade, security and more with our friends and partners in the EU.
Labour will seek the kind of relationship respected Brexiteers like Daniel Hanam sought during the Referendum campaign, where he talked of the UK after Brexit being part of a greater European Common Market.
And it will be a relationship which serves us so much better than the current chaos which the Conservatives have inflicted on us.
Bill Rammell is a former Labour MP and Minister and former University Vice Chancellor.