Ed Davey has labelled the Conservative Party’s Brexit deal a “disaster” and urged the government to “show the urgency and ambition” needed to fix the UK-EU relationship.
Marking five years since Britain left the European Union, Davey also accused the prime minister of “living in a parallel universe” if he thinks that the UK economy will grow “without boosting trade with our nearest neighbours.”
The Liberal Democrat leader said: “A new UK-EU customs union deal will unlock growth, demonstrate British leadership and give us the best possible hand to play against President Trump.”
In January 2020, Britain officially left the EU after voting to leave four years prior via referendum. 52 per cent of voters backed the UK’s exit from the EU in 2016, with 48 per cent siding with “Remain”.
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A YouGov published earlier this week recorded that just 30 per cent of Britons now say it was right for the UK to vote to leave the EU.
More than six in 10 Britons (62 per cent) say that Brexit has so far been more of a failure — against just 11 per cent who feel that it has been more of a success. A more noncommittal 20 per cent of Britons consider it to be neither a success nor failure, YouGov found.
The polling also revealed that as many as one in six “Leave” voters (18 per cent) say that it was wrong for Britain to choose to leave the EU. 66 per cent still say Britain made the right decision.
By contrast, 88 per cent of “Remainers” think a vote for Brexit was wrong, with just 7 per cent saying it was the right choice.
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In a recent speech, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch appeared to acknowledge her party had made mistakes following the 2016 referendum. “We announced that we would leave the European Union before we had a plan for growth outside the EU”, Badenoch said.
The Lib Dem leader used his own New Year’s address, delivered on 16 January, to call on the government to negotiate a customs union arrangement with the EU.
Davey argued such a deal would allow the UK to handle “president Trump from a position of strength, not weakness.”
He said: “Forming a customs union with the EU is not only the single biggest thing we can do to turbocharge our economy in the medium and long term. But an agreement to work towards one would unlock big economic benefits for the UK now and start tearing down those damaging Conservative trade barriers this year.
“It would be a win-win for our country, and I still can’t understand why the government continues to rule it out.”
At prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, Davey reiterated his call for the prime minister to go further in his pursuit of a UK-EU relationship “reset”.
Davey said: “The chancellor has now admitted that we need to go further and faster in the pursuit of economic growth, and we agree, but the prime minister knows that we believe that means setting aside his objections to a UK-EU customs union so that our country can go further and faster in rebuilding our trading relationships with our European neighbours.”
Keir Starmer replied: “[He] knows that in relation to the reset with the EU, which we are determined to achieve, we have clear red lines when it comes to the single market and the customs union.
“He knows where we stand on that.”
Commenting on the fifth anniversary of the UK leaving the EU, Davey said: “The UK needs to lead in Europe and the world. It’s clear we cannot rely on Donald Trump – a man who has threatened to invade a NATO ally — to secure our continent. Strengthening ties of diplomacy and security with the EU is urgent.
“We must repair the trading relationship with our neighbours that was so badly ruined under the Conservatives. Their deal has been an utter disaster for our country – for farmers, fishers and small businesses — caught up in red tape.
“So far the Labour government has failed to show the urgency and ambition needed to fix our relationship with Europe. Ministers must be in a parallel universe if they think we can grow the economy without boosting trade with our nearest neighbours.
“A new UK-EU customs union deal will unlock growth, demonstrate British leadership and give us the best possible hand to play against President Trump.”
Josh Self is Editor of Politics.co.uk, follow him on Bluesky here.
Politics.co.uk is the UK’s leading digital-only political website. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for all the latest news and analysis.
