Labour politicians join forces to fight against Tories' hard Brexit

[Denzil_DC]

More than 50 Labour politicians, including frontbenchers, have signed a statement claiming young voters backed their party in 2017 because they wanted it to “stop the Tories in their tracks” over Brexit.

The group, made up of dozens of MPs, peers and MEPs on the left and right of the party, claimed the best way to do that was by “fighting unambiguously for membership of the single market”.

In an intervention that will increase the pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to further differentiate his position from that of the Tories, the politicians say “mere access” to the internal market will make working people poorer and hit revenues.

That will make it harder to “bring an end to years of damaging Tory austerity”, they say.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jun/20/labour-politicians-join-forces-to-fight-against-tories-hard-brexit

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Later in the article, there's finally acknowledgement that existing "Four Freedoms" EU rules allow restrictions on EU citizens moving to the UK. This is as succinct a summary of why the UK hasn't exercised that right as I've found:

Link to tweet

Prof. Colin Talbot @colinrtalbot

The important point here is UK could always have better controlled borders but chose not to and then blamed the EU

[Denzil_DC]

1. Declaration by 51 Labour politicians:

As Labour politicians, we reject a hard-right Brexit, and defend the single market

Jeremy Corbyn has rightly said that Labour’s position on Brexit is to focus on a deal that prioritises jobs first. We are all united behind that goal. For us that means membership of the single market. A country can be a member of the single market without being a member of the EU and we must be clear – “access” to the European single market is both different and inferior to “membership” of the single market. Why? Because if we leave the single market, whatever the level of access is negotiated, working people across Britain will be worse off and revenue to the exchequer will plummet – revenue the next Labour government will need to bring an end to years of damaging Tory austerity.

The single market is not a simple free trade zone. It is, uniquely, a framework of rules that protects people from the worst excesses of globalisation and unfettered capitalism, in addition to easing trade across the continent. If we have mere access to the single market, we are talking about leaving this framework of rules and achieving mere reductions in tariffs for trade with the European Union.

If Britain stays in the single market, we will continue to benefit from EU laws and court judgments that outlaw discrimination in the workplace; deliver vital rights to workers on holiday pay, maternity and paternity leave, the right to join a union, and much more; protect our natural environment from pollution; and keep workers safe through stringent health and safety requirements. Large multinational companies work across borders to maximise their profits to often reduce these protections; the next Labour government, as a member of the single market, can work with other European countries to resist this and advance social justice. If we leave the single market, and ask for mere “access”, we will be compromised in achieving these goals.

This is why so many people in the Labour movement are supporting British membership of the single market after Brexit. Frances O’Grady, the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, has said that “if we leave the single market, working people will end up paying the price. It’d be bad for jobs, for work rights and for our living standards.” The USDAW trade union has warned that leaving the single market “will put at risk hundreds of thousands of jobs”.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jun/20/end-austerity-uk-single-market-theresa-may-brexit

[Denzil_DC]

2. See also this earlier thread:

May's Ministers Plot Softer Brexit to Keep U.K. in Single Market
https://www.democraticunderground.com/108813199

Which includes:

Tory and Labour MPs plot secret deal to ensure soft Brexit
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/12/tory-labour-mps-plot-secret-deal-ensure-soft-brexit/

Should be a fun Queen's Speech debate ...

[Ghost Dog]

3. Certainly, to register as resident in Spain I had to show ample funds

in a bank account and a private medical insurance policy, since I was not employed. And of course one must have applied for and obtained a Spanish ID Number.

Caveat emptor.

[Denzil_DC]

4. No deal Brexit unacceptable, 30 Tory MPs tell Number 10

At least 30 Conservative MPs have indicated to their own Government that they will not accept leaving the European Union without an agreed deal.

Sky News has been told the MPs informed whips that the economic impact of a "cliff-edge" Brexit, alongside the failure of the Conservatives to win a majority for its manifesto, should lead to a rethink of the position that "no deal is better than a bad deal".

...

One former minister told Sky News that "no deal is now dead", and anticipated a transition phase of five to 10 years inside the European Economic Area.

...

Another Conservative MP said Tory centrists from the 2015 intake were now organised in a WhatsApp grouping and behind the push to ensure the Prime Minister is not overly influenced by the Brexiteer grouping the European Research Group (ERG).

http://news.sky.com/story/no-brexit-deal-unacceptable-30-tory-mps-tell-number-10-10921780