I believe Keir Starmer when he says that under Labour we will not be joining the EU again, or its Single Market, or customs union. He has been saying that since he became Labour leader and now since he became Labour Prime Minister.
He had quite a different view of migration and FOM back in 2020:
The government will now “aim” for the fastest economic growth per capita in the Group of Seven advanced economies, according to a document setting out Starmer’s plans. It had previously been described as a “goal”.
Of course, Starmer’s goal of the UK being the fastest growing economy of the G7 cannot be achieved with the UK being outside the EU. Putting up barriers to trade with our most important export and import market in the world by far offers us no benefits, only serious downsides, impeding our businesses and making Britain and Britons poorer. Of course Sir Keir knows this, but he won’t say it.
Keir Starmer does not have a mandate to take us back into the EU. People say that he could offer that in a second term, but I don’t believe that. Neither do I think, on current form, that he will get a second term.
It’s a long road back to the EU, if it ever happens. And frankly I don’t think it will ever happen whilst the pro EU side is so disorganised, fragmented, and doesn’t have a clue how to do proper campaigning.
It’s reported in The Sunday Times that Elon Musk may give Nigel Farage US$100m to help him become the next Prime Minister. The side I bat for doesn’t seem to have a clue what we are up against. What I do, as a lone ranger, won’t make any difference.
Only by getting politically organised and working together might the pro-EU side win. But I am not holding my breath. Without a proper professional high profile national campaign, costing millions and prevailing for years, I don’t think we have a chance.
It’s also infuriating, because I think the dystopian future we have entered was all avoidable if only the pro-EU side had done proper campaigning from the start. I have achieved very little as a lone ranger, and I should never have had to work alone. We should all have been working together before things got this far. Now, it’s a lot, lot harder.
𝗝𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝘇𝗶𝗴 is an independent campaigning journalist and film maker who specialises in writing about health, human rights, and Europe. He is also founder of the information campaign, Reasons2Rejoin.