Keir Starmer is preparing new Brexit legislation that would allow powers to flow back to Brussels without MPs getting a vote, in a move critics say tramples over democracy.
Labour is planning to introduce a Brexit bill later this year that would enable the UK to sign up to so called dynamic alignment with the European Union as part of Sir Keir’s reset with Brussels.
The legislation would underpin a series of new deals the Prime Minister wants with the EU, including an agreement on food and veterinary standards already reached last year.
Since Britain left the EU, new European rules on goods and services have not automatically applied in the UK. That change was hailed by Brexiteers as restoring parliamentary control over British law.
Under Sir Keir’s plans, Britain would once again be locked into EU rules on food standards, animal welfare and pesticide use in perpetuity through dynamic alignment. Talks with Brussels are still ongoing.
Dynamic alignment would mean that new EU regulations automatically take effect in the UK, marking the first surrender of control over standards since Brexit.
The bill, expected to be tabled in the spring, is already sparking fury from the Conservatives and Reform UK, who accuse Labour of quietly dismantling Brexit without asking voters or Parliament.
Opponents also warn that Labour figures are edging Britain closer to deeper integration with the EU, after several of Sir Keir’s closest allies argued openly for rejoining the customs union.
Ministers insist closer alignment could boost economic growth and argue that many UK exporters already follow EU rules voluntarily to make trade easier.
Starmer has said Britain should “go further” in strengthening post Brexit ties with Brussels following a trade deal agreed earlier this year.
However, he has tried to dampen suggestions the UK could rejoin the customs union, after Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the arrangement had “enormous economic benefits”.
The Prime Minister has described rejoining the customs union or the single market as “red lines”, while still signalling a desire for closer alignment.
Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday programme, Sir Keir said he had already taken a “sovereign decision” to move closer to the EU.
He told Laura Kuenssberg: “I think we should get closer, and if it’s in our national interest to have even closer alignment with the single market, then we should consider that, we should go that far.”
Sir Keir also admitted he had “argued for a customs union for many years” but claimed “a lot of water has now gone under the bridge” and it was no longer the right option.
Dame Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, said Labour’s “Brexit betrayal” was “becoming clearer by the day” and accused Sir Keir of “trying to undo the democratic decision of the British people”.
Despite Downing Street denials, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy and Mr Streeting have both indicated support for rejoining the customs union in recent interviews.
A Labour source defended the plans, saying: “The bill will give us the powers to share rules with the EU. All international agreements involve shared rules. That’s their very nature. We’re confident in making the case for specific trade offs, where it has clear benefits for businesses and consumers.”
Critics say the row exposes a government willing to hand powers back to Brussels by stealth, sidelining MPs and ignoring the verdict of the Brexit referendum.
