Jeremy Corbyn launches bid to get cross-party support for Labour's soft Brexit plan
2 min read
Jeremy Corbyn is seeking talks with cross-party MPs in a bid to secure backing for Labour's plans for a soft Brexit.
The Labour boss has written to the leaders of other opposition parties, as well as Tory supporters of the Norway-style "Common Market 2.0" proposal, in a bid to come up with an alternative to Theresa May's deal.
In the invite, Mr Corbyn said the starting point for discussions should be "Labour’s credible options" of a permanent customs union plus close ties to the EU's single market.
The move comes as Theresa May desperately tries to secure enough backing for her own deal, which has already been comprehensively rejected twice by the Commons.
Mr Corbyn said: "She cannot keep bringing back an unchanged deal. It is ridiculous. She has got to recognise that we’ve got to do something different.
"That’s why I’ve written to colleagues across parliament and invited them to meet me, Keir Starmer and Shadow Cabinet colleagues to discuss our credible proposals of a customs union, market access and guaranteeing rights and environmental and consumer protections.
"I look forward to those and more meetings this week so that we can do what the Government should have started two years ago – namely reach out, engage and listen to different views and find a consensus on Brexit which helps bring our country back together."
The Labour leader said his party was also open to "a public vote to prevent damaging Brexit proposals being forced on the country".
But appearing on Sky News on Sunday, he was reluctant to say whether he would vote to stay in the EU if another referendum were to take place.
He said: “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.
And asked if he was enthusiastic about the prospect of a second referendum he would only say: “I’m enthusiastic about getting a deal with Europe."
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