Jeremy Corbyn says Labour may back another EU referendum

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn urged Theresa May to accept his alternative plan for Brexit.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn urged Theresa May to accept his alternative plan for Brexit.

Jeremy Corbyn has said that the Labour Party may still back a second Brexit referendum.

The leader of the opposition has suggested the possibility of a follow up EU vote as he urged Theresa May to accept his amendments to her Brexit deal.

Corbyn says the option of a public vote remained on the table – in line with the policy agreed following marathon negotiations at his party’s conference in 2018.

He faced a backlash from pro-EU Labour MPs after setting out his conditions for accepting a Brexit deal in a letter to the Prime Minister.

But Corbyn said the party’s policy remained as set out following the party conference – to call for a general election if May fails to get a deal through Parliament and then to keep all options open.

Corbyn accused Mrs May of an “utterly cynical” and “reckless” attempt to run down the clock before the UK’s exit from the European Union on March 29, in a speech in Coventry.

He said Labour’s plan “could win the support of Parliament and bring the country together” but Mrs May has so far “chosen the path of division”.

Theresa May in Brussels (PA)
Theresa May in Brussels (PA)

“If she is unable to adopt a sensible deal because it would split the Tories, then the answer is quite simple: there must be a general election,” Mr Corbyn said.

Theresa May survived a confidence motion in her government tabled by Corbyn, which could have led to an election, after her Brexit deal was overwhelmingly rejected by MPs in January.

Corbyn said that without an election “we will keep all options on the table – as agreed in our conference motion -including the option of a public vote”.

He said: “The country cannot be taken over the cliff edge for the sake of Tory party unity.”

The Labour leader said Mrs May must drop her “damaging red lines” on Brexit and insisted his plan “can break the impasse” in Parliament.


In his letter to Mrs May, the Labour leader set out the following five demands:

– A permanent customs union to deliver frictionless trade and help avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland

– Close alignment with the single market, including shared institutions and obligations

– Alignment on rights and protections so that UK standards keep pace with those across Europe as a minimum

– Participation in EU agencies and funding programmes

– Unambiguous agreements on the detail of future security arrangements, including access to the European Arrest Warrant and vital shared databases.