There will be no end to the Brexit saga if Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn waste time on another deal

This sorry state of affairs has gone on long enough. It should be resolved one way or the other, and soon. The best way to achieve that is a Final Say referendum

Sunday 05 May 2019 16:35 BST
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May should recognise that the local elections showed that parties that advocate a Final Say can prosper
May should recognise that the local elections showed that parties that advocate a Final Say can prosper

Every crisis presents an opportunity – and Theresa May is trying to turn the Conservatives’ disastrous local election results in England to her advantage. She is warning Labour that the voters’ message to both main parties is that they must “do a deal” to bring the Brexit saga to an end.

Ministers are more optimistic than their Labour shadows about a breakthrough when the two sides resume negotiations on Tuesday.

Jeremy Corbyn has an acute dilemma. Labour, too, performed badly in the council elections. But its results have been interpreted in very different ways by his party’s rival camps, with Leavers saying Labour should facilitate a deal, and Remainers pointing to gains by the anti-Brexit Liberal Democrats and Greens.

Mr Corbyn wants a general election, but must decide whether Labour’s prospects of securing one would be enhanced by getting Brexit over the line or standing back and hoping the Tories self-destruct.

There are signs that Labour is preparing the ground for the failure of the talks. It accused the Tories of bad faith by briefing Sunday newspapers on the confidential negotiations, which centre on a customs union. Perhaps this was Labour’s opening salvo in the blame game that would inevitably begin if the two parties cannot agree.

Yet Labour insists it will continue to negotiate in good faith and there is still a prospect a deal will be reached. If the Tories move far enough and Ms May might decide she has nothing left to lose by doing so Mr Corbyn could judge it to Labour’s advantage to move on to other issues such as austerity, which proved fertile territory for his party at the 2017 general election.

The problem is that the proposed agreement between the government and opposition would not allow the country to move on. The UK would remain in what Ms May would call a customs arrangement and everyone else would recognise as a customs union.

But crucially, it would not be “permanent”, as Labour’s policy currently demands, and would last only until the next general election, due in 2022.

Then the two parties could offer a softer or harder version of Brexit or stick with the deal. Although it is true that no parliament can bind its successor, there is an urgent need for stability after the uncertainty of the past three years. As Labour acknowledges, any deal should be “entrenched” because the many Tories vying to succeed Ms May are playing to the party gallery by suggesting they would unravel her agreement.

The deal being discussed by the prime minister and Labour leader would prolong rather than end the divisive Brexit debate. It would put off a final decision on the UK’s long-term relationship with the EU for another three years.

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An endless argument over the “end state” would leave no room for neglected issues, such as social care, school budgets, knife crime, housing, homelessness, in-work poverty and inequality. A further delay would prolong the uncertainty for people and businesses.

This sorry saga has gone on long enough. It should be resolved one way or the other, and soon. The best way to achieve that is a Final Say referendum a confirmatory ballot on any deal struck between the two parties or, alternatively, on Ms May’s deal, with voters given the option of Remain in either scenario.

A referendum is gaining support. The local elections showed that parties that advocate one can prosper. Mr Corbyn should take note. More Tories are coming round to the idea. Sir Eric Pickles, an ultra-loyal former party chair who previously opposed a referendum, said that if parliament could not resolve the issue, it should be “put to the public”.

A referendum that approved an agreement would make it harder for Ms May’s successor to unpick it. If people opted to Remain, the issue would be settled and the country and its politicians really could move on. A Final Say referendum would live up to its name and be final.

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