Keir Starmer blames 'wannabe Tory leaders' for Brexit talks failure

The shadow Brexit secretary, Keir Starmer, has blamed “wannabe Tory leaders” for the breakdown of cross-party talks as he renewed his call for a second referendum on leaving the EU.

The government and Labour sought to blame each other after talks to find a compromise Brexit plan collapsed on Friday, leaving any remaining hopes of an imminent solution to the impasse in tatters.

While both sides insisted the discussions had taken place in good faith, the prime minister said a key sticking point had been Labour splits over a second referendum, while the opposition said May’s imminent departure from Downing Street meant there was no guarantee any promises would be kept by her successor.

Michael Gove

The fortunes of the environment secretary remain hard to predict and opinion is split in the party. His detractors believe he is deeply unpopular with the country and has ruined his reputation for good when he stood against Johnson at the last leadership race. However, most MPs were delighted by his performance in the no-confidence vote where he tore into Corbyn.

Matt Hancock

While the response of many voters to mention of the health secretary is still likely to be ‘Who?’, to some he is starting to have the makings of a from-the-sidelines contender. The former culture secretary is only 40 but has six years of frontbench experience, and is on to his second cabinet post.

Jeremy Hunt

The nickname ‘Theresa in trousers’ has stuck. Most colleagues speak about his candidacy unenthusiastically and warn about his reputation with the country after having weathered the junior doctors’ strike. He could still succeed by bridging the Brexit-remain divide and attracting colleagues looking for a moderate grown-up.

Sajid Javid

The home secretary is reported to have told Tory MPs he is the only one who can beat Jeremy Corbyn in a general election, but has made less of an impact than first predicted. Several MPs believe that the case of Isis bride Shamima Begum was mishandled and find Javid’s speeches and vision less than inspiring.

Boris Johnson

Still favourite for the top job, Johnson has kept himself out of the messiest Tory warfare in 2019 and has enthusiastic support from younger Brexiter MPs – and the patronage of Jacob Rees-Mogg. His supporters insist no other name on the list can connect with voters in the same way and win a general election. However, his reputation is still severely damaged from his time as foreign secretary and there is a concerted ‘anyone but Boris’ campaign among party colleagues.

Andrea Leadsom

Leadsom has revived her reputation somewhat during her tenure as Commons leader, especially her rounds in the ring with the Speaker, John Bercow. However, few believe she would ever be first choice again among Eurosceptics and a number of her former campaign team have said they will discourage her from running.

Esther McVey

Former cabinet minister McVey has already announced her intention to run. She has the Brexit credentials, having quit as Work and Pensions Secretary in protest at Theresa May's withdrawal agreement, and claims to already have enough support from fellow MPs to make her bid viable.

Penny Mordaunt

The international development secretary is a confirmed Brexiter, which will appeal to much of the leadership electorate, but is also decidedly liberal on social issues, so could be seen as a unifier. But for some the idea of Mordaunt is more credible than the reality. There is still, however, time for her to turn this impression around.

Dominic Raab

The former Brexit secretary has a loyal fanbase and a professional team, including support from Vote Leave’s ex-comms director Paul Stephenson. MPs are forming the view that the next party leader should be a younger face from a new generation of politicians – which gives Raab the edge over Boris Johnson. 

Amber Rudd

The work and pensions secretary, the favourite among the party’s left, has all but ruled herself out of the race. She could still be a powerful kingmaker, and is being wooed as a running mate by everyone from Johnson and Michael Gove to Hunt.

Liz Truss

Truss has worked the circuit more than almost any other potential candidate, speaking on the future of the Tory party at almost any venue that will have her – thinktanks, launches and in weekend newspaper spreads. She hopes to win Brexiter backing with a publicly enthusiastic embrace of a no-deal Brexit – much to the scepticism of Treasury colleagues. 

And those not in the running

Among the senior figures not expected to run are Brandon Lewis, the party chairman, Chris Grayling, the transport secretary, and Philip Hammond, the chancellor, who acknowledges that he is not popular enough. Gavin Williamson’s recent sacking after the Huawei leak inquiry will also surely rule him out as an option this time around.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Starmer said: “The real problem was this question of how on earth do you future-proof any deal – if there was a deal – against an incoming Tory leader?. Because … the prime minister said before we started the talks that she would be going. It’s not for me to criticise that, that’s her judgment about when she wants to go.

“But it does mean that during the talks – almost literally – sitting in the room as we’re talking, cabinet members and wannabe Tory leaders were torpedoing the talks with remarks about not being willing to accept a customs union.”

He echoed the words of the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, last week that the negotiations were like “trying to contract with a company about to go into administration. There was a weakness, because circling around those in the room trying to negotiate were others who didn’t want the negotiation to succeed because they had their eye on what was coming next.”

He said the situation put May “in a position where she was in reality too weak to deliver, in our judgment”.

Starmer said the government had to find a way to end the stalemate, and suggested: “They could seek to break the impasse by putting a confirmatory vote on the face of a bill.”

Starmer’s comments came as Matt Hancock, the health secretary, said May’s successor should not call a general election until Britain had left the EU.

He said an early poll could hand the keys of No 10 to the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, and risk “killing Brexit altogether”.

He said it was essential the Conservatives delivered on the 2016 referendum result in the current parliament.

A poll of Tory members made Boris Johnson the frontrunner to succeed May after she bowed to pressure and agreed to set a timetable at the start of next month to elect a new leader.

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Hancock, who voted remain in the referendum, said: “I think a general election before we’ve delivered Brexit would be a disaster. People don’t want it. I’m with Brenda from Bristol. We need to take responsibility for delivering on the referendum result.”

May is to make one final attempt to get her Brexit deal through parliament when she introduces the withdrawal agreement bill in the Commons in the first full week of June. But after the cross-party talks collapsed, few in Westminster give her much chance of success.

Whatever the result, May has agreed to meet the chair of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs, Sir Graham Brady, after the vote to agree a timetable for the election of her successor.