WATCH: Barry Gardiner says Labour could 'bend its red lines' to back Theresa May on Brexit
3 min read
A Shadow Cabinet member and ally of Jeremy Corbyn has said Labour could “bend its red lines” on Brexit to help Theresa May get her deal through the Commons.
Barry Gardiner said the opposition could compromise in the national interest to prevent “the no-deal that will take us off the edge of that cliff”.
His comments came after Jeremy Corbyn told the Labour conference in Liverpool his party could back the Prime Minister in parliament if she secures a “sensible” deal with Brussels.
The Labour leader said the agreement would have to include staying in a customs union with the bloc, protecting the Irish border and maintaining employment and environmental standards.
Party sources told PoliticsHome the comments did not mark a policy shift - and that the six tests Labour has set the Prime Minister on Brexit would still have to be met.
But Shadow International Trade Secretary Mr Gardiner appeared to go further in an appearance last night on the ITV Peston show.
He said Mr Corbyn was “seizing the initiative” and urging the Prime MInister to “work together in the interest of the country to get a deal” and avoid a cliff-edge Brexit.
“And if it means compromising, if it means you bending your red line to give us a customs union, we are prepared to bend our red lines to give this a deal,” he said.
Mr Corbyn told the Prime Minister yesterday: “If you deliver a deal that includes a customs union and no hard border in Ireland, if you protect jobs, people’s rights at work and environmental and consumer standards - then we will support that sensible deal.
“A deal that would be backed by most of the business world and trade unions too.
“But if you can’t negotiate that deal then you need to make way for a party that can.”
Mr Corbyn will travel to Brussels to meet chief EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier today in a move that will pile fresh pressure on Mrs May.
Speaking ahead of the trip, he said: "”With just weeks of negotiating time left, it’s clear that UK-EU Brexit talks are in a perilous state.
“Time is running out and companies are losing patience with the absence of any clarity from the government.”
He added: “Crashing out of Europe with no deal risks being a national disaster.
“That is why I’m meeting EU officials today, and I will be urging them to do all they can to avoid a ‘no-deal’ outcome, which would be so damaging to jobs and living standards in both the UK and EU countries.”
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