Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel has come out swinging after Keir Starmer claimed his EU ‘reset’ deal has put Britain back on the world stage.
Speaking on GB News, the ex-Home Secretary branded his deal a “betrayal” of Brexit as she hit out at remarks made by the Prime Minister at a Central London summit with EU leaders.
Asked about his comments about Britain’s stature on the world stage, she said: “What a load of nonsense, quite frankly.
“That is utter rubbish from Keir Starmer and not for the first time, quite frankly.
Priti Patel said some of Labour's claims surrounding the deal are 'misleading'
GB NEWS / PA
“It is Britain that led international efforts when it came to Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine so he needs to go away and do some homework.
“Of course, it was Conservatives in Government that led the way when it came to Britain post-Brexit securing those trade deals, over 70 trade agreements during our tenure in Government.
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Priti Patel joined Eamonn Holmes and Ellie Costello on GB News to discuss the deal
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“We’re not going to listen to that nonsense from Keir Starmer who just wants to constantly betray Britain, the democratic vote of the British people when it came to the Brexit referendum.
“I think he needs to go back and recalibrate his very smug comments.”
She said many of the claims Labour is making surrounding the deal are “misleading”.
“Where’s the economic impact assessment? The stuff on border and passport queues is just nonsense”, she told GB News.
EU leaders attended the UK-EU summit in London yesterday
GETTY“I don’t think your viewers are totally aware that the EU have a digital system coming in anyway called the EU entry and exit system which is basically their equivalent of the digital border system we have put in place in the UK.
“And yet the Government and Starmer claim this is some great win. By the way, when this comes in October, it will lead to queues because we will have to provide our biometrics and lots of personal data. It’s wrong and misleading.”
Sir Keir Starmer unveiled his "reset" deal with the EU yesterday at Lancaster House, claiming to move beyond the "stale old debates and political fights" of the Brexit era. The prime minister presented the agreement as a triumph for British consumers, business and security over what he characterised as the ideological fixations of Brexiters.
The deal includes a sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement, also known as a "vet deal", which will allow the "vast majority" of plant and animal products to move between the UK and EU without the certificates or controls currently required.
UK food and drink exports to the EU have fallen by 34 per cent (£3 billion annually) since Brexit, and this agreement aims to help British exporters sell products like burgers and shellfish in EU markets again.
A key component of the deal is a 12-year extension of full reciprocal access to waters for EU fishermen to operate in UK waters. Starmer insisted this would protect UK access with no increase in EU vessels, while the government will invest £360 million into the fishing industry to help them capitalise on the new SPS agreement.
The deal also introduces a new youth mobility scheme allowing 18 to 30-year-olds to live and work freely across the UK and EU for a limited time, with potential to extend to those under 35.
