Keir Starmer has insisted that the United Kingdom will not rejoin the European Union, the single market, or the customs union within his lifetime, marking his firmest pledge yet that a Labour government would not seek much closer relations with Europe for as long as he is prime minister. The Labour leader told reporters on Wednesday that he did not think Britain would go back into any of the three blocs while he was alive, all but ruling out rejoining even if he wins a second term.
Asked whether he could foresee any circumstances where the UK rejoined the single market or customs union within his lifetime, Starmer said: “No. I don’t think that that is going to happen. I’ve been really clear about not rejoining the EU, the single market or the customs union – or [allowing a] return to freedom of movement.” However, he repeated his view that Labour could achieve better trading arrangements with the EU in certain industries, stating: “I do think we could get a better deal than the botched deal we got under Boris Johnson on the trading front, in research and development and on security.”
With less than 24 hours until polls open, Starmer has largely avoided discussing EU relations during the campaign, as Labour seeks to avoid the mistakes of 2019 when it alienated leave voters by promising a second referendum. Some had suggested that this reluctance masked a desire to pursue re-entry during a second term, but Starmer’s comments on Wednesday dismissed that notion. He also spoke about the immediate challenges facing a Labour government, including a crisis in Britain’s full-up prisons, indicating openness to reducing average sentences, and the long-term challenge of rightwing populism, suggesting he would be willing to work across party lines to combat it.
