71 Labour MPs urge Corbyn to push second Brexit referendum, Farage says it'll only galvanize leavers

Nicola Bartlett
Mirror
Wed, 16 Jan 2019 09:43 UTC

© PA

Jeremy Corbyn's focus is on a no confidence vote in the government - but Labour MPs are already looking to what comes next

"We now face a moment of national crisis, where the facts and the views of many people have changed," the MPs write

A group of 71 Labour MPs have urged Jeremy Corbyn to swing behind a second EU referendum in a new letter.

Today the group claimed there are more who have either already come out for a second vote, or will do so if a no confidence vote in the government fails tonight.

Urging Mr Corbyn to drop his policy of reopening talks with the EU, they write: "We now face a moment of national crisis, where the facts and the views of many people have changed - and are continuing to change.

"It is now clear renegotiation is not a realistic prospect."

Among the new additions are Liz Kendall, John Grogan, Kate Green and Margaret Hodge.

Among the most well-known backing today's letter are former shadow work and pensions secretary Debbie Abrahams. She previously described a second referendum as "extremely unhelpful".

But Labour sources say none of the new names are a surprise to the party leadership.

And given the party is in opposition they would need to win the support of at least 40 Tories.

The MPs moved as the government is expected to survive a no confidence vote brought by Mr Corbyn tonight.

Labour have a second referendum as one of several "options on the table" - if a general election can't be achieved.

That is in accordance with a motion that was agreed at the party conference in September.

If tonight's vote fails, Remain-backing MPs claim their leader should then pivot to fully back a second referendum.

© AFP/Getty

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell suggested Labour could make a decision in the coming weeks

Earlier, Remain-backing Labour MP David Lammy told the BBC Mr Corbyn could "take ownership of the single worst policy decision in peacetime" or "be courageous, tell the truth to the British people".

He said Brexit will mean less money for schools, "immigration will go up not down after Brexit". And he urged the Labour leader not to be "cooperating with a Brexit that's running into the sand."

© PA

Remain-backing Labour MP David Lammy told the BBC Mr Corbyn could “take ownership of the single worst policy decision in peacetime" or "be courageous, tell the truth to the British people"

Asked if he was calling for Mr Corbyn personally to go by the BBC Mr Lammy said: "This is not about him standing down. He's the elected leader of the Labour party. Of course he shouldn't stand down as leader."

Questioned later, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell suggested Labour could make a decision in the coming weeks.

Full text of the letter

This is an unprecedented and perilous moment in our history.

With this Tory Government in chaos and with the jobs and security of our constituents on the line - we strongly support the Labour decision to reject Theresa May's "deal".

We were appalled at her anti-democratic moves to prevent Parliament having a vote, and to run down the clock by delaying it until mid-January. This was an utterly irresponsible decision, and gambling with the jobs and livelihoods of our constituents.

The Tory Government approach has been disastrous since day one. Their plans would lead to more austerity, fewer jobs and less money for our public services. This is not what anyone voted for in 2016.

We represent hugely diverse constituencies from the North to the South, from Wales to Scotland. Many of our constituencies voted to Leave in 2016. We must listen to and respond to the reasons why people did so.

But we now face a moment of national crisis, where the facts and the views of many people have changed - and are continuing to change.

It is now clear renegotiation is not a realistic prospect. No deal would be a catastrophe which we must resolutely oppose. The Government should seek an extension to Article 50 to provide time for Parliament to find a way forward. Theresa May has failed to bring this country back together.

Labour's conference adopted a clear policy for this situation.

We must try and remove this Government from office as soon as possible. But the removal of the Government and pushing for a General Election may prove impossible, so we must join Trade Unions, our members and a majority of our constituents by then unequivocally backing the only logical option to help our country move forward: putting the decision back to the people for a final say, in a public vote, with the option to stay and keep the deal that we have.

Defeat of the Tory deal in a public vote would give us all a chance to campaign for the antiausterity policies and a Labour government that deals with the true causes of the Brexit vote, and a reformed Europe that works for all people.

Full list of 71 Labour MPs signing the letter here.

Comment: It's not immediately clear from the letter how the shambles that is the Tory government and a second Brexit referendum correlate exactly, and it's notable that those MPs voting for it come as no surprise to the Labour leadership, because, unlike Corbyn, their overriding priority is not the will of the people who voted for Brexit but their own ideological bias which doesn't want Brexit to go ahead. That's not to say some people haven't changed their mind having witnessed how difficult extricating the country from the EU would be.

RT reports on a speech MEP Nigel Farage made at EU parliament before the no confidence vote that a second referendum would only galvanize leave voters:

Nigel Farage predicts new Brexit referendum would be won by even bigger 'LEAVE' vote

A new referendum on Brexit, reportedly desired by the UK elite, would result in even bigger support for leaving the EU, former UKIP leader and one of the party's founders, Nigel Farage, has said as Theresa May's plan flopped.

The government's astounding defeat in the House of Commons, which was the worst in history in terms of the losing margin, drew fire for the prime minister from all political flanks. One of the most prominent pro-Brexit campaigners, Farage, did not stay silent.

"A catastrophic failure of leadership by Theresa May. If she has any sense of honor then she will resign," he tweeted.

The politician has posted a video that was recorded before the vote, in which he correctly predicted May's deal flopping in parliament and warned his supporters of the apparent desire of the political elite to "start to push towards a second referendum" on the UK-EU divorce.

"It is quite possible that we could leave with no deal on WTO, and as far as I'm concerned, no deal - no problem. But it is more likely that many in our political class will try to weasel their way out of this," Farage warned.

Even if Westminster manages to push through a new Brexit referendum, a new vote would actually show even bigger support for the idea of leaving the EU, Farage argued.

"The British may be a very placid people, very laid back, but I promise you: if they get pushed too far it's a lion that will roar. We will be even more defiant if we have to fight a second referendum and we will win it by a bigger majority," the politician said on Wednesday.

May's Brexit deal, painstakingly agreed with the EU last year, was crushed in parliament on Tuesday by 432 to 202 votes. The overwhelming rejection to the plan prompted Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to table a no-confidence motion, which is to be debated on Wednesday evening.

Here's the video of Farage's speech:

As noted in Joe Quinn's new article Still Confused About Brexit? It's Actually Pretty Simple...

So the obvious reason why the last 2.5 years of British politics has been an utter farce, and why the British people find themselves in this current mess, is that while a majority of British citizens voted to leave the EU, a large majority of their MPs on both sides of the aisle (and the British 'establishment' itself) do not want to leave the EU and are determined to make sure it never happens. To claim otherwise would be to suggest that British politicians were as clueless about the nature of the UK's relationship with the EU as the British public. But that's not the full story.

See also: Brexit: A Political Farce Based on a Public Lie

And also check out SOTT radio's:

• NewsReal: Yellow Vest Protests, Brexit Farce - Revolutionary Climate in Western Europe?
• NewsReal: California Wildfires, Climate Change, And The Impossible Brexit