Politics

Brexit chaos: McDonnell spectacularly exposes utter disarray of Labour's Brexit policy


Labour have been criticised by figures from within and outside their party for not making their Brexit policy clear. Deputy Leader Tom Watson has consistently called for Labour to back Remain and reports had suggested Mr Watson would get his way. But the Shadow Chancellor suggested in an interview with Robert Peston on ITV Peston there is a chance that will not be the case: “My view at the moment, I think we’ll almost certainly be Remain.”

When Mr Peston asked him for a definitive answer, he responded: “We’ll see if Boris Johnson comes back with some sort of deal, we’ll look at that, just as we did last time, but at the moment, I can’t see him stitching up a deal either to Labour or to quite a bit of his own side as well.”

Mr McDonnell said this meant: “It looks as though we’ll be in a straight situation between no deal and Remain.”

Mr Peston also asked the veteran left-winger and close Jeremy Corbyn all how the Opposition party would decide when to “trigger” a potential vote of no confidence.

Mr McDonnell explained: “When he comes back with something that’s undeliverable, unacceptable.”

READ MORE: Corbyn’s party sit in silence as whole House rises to applaud May 

Mr Peston asked him to clarify if he was admitting Labour would wait until they saw a Brexit alternative.

Mr McDonnell, who failed to get the nominations required for leadership challenges in 2007 and 2010, explained: “You’ll judge it in conversations you’ll have across the house about what’s feasible and what’s not.”

He added he will be helped by Mr Johnson having what he described as a harder right-wing Government.

The possibility of now backbench former Cabinet members siding with Labour was not ruled out.

The Guardian reported in September that Mr McDonnell said a second Brexit referendum should not include the option of Remain.

He said that in order to respect the first referendum, a second should only be on the deal.

The BBC reported the Labour manifesto at the 2017 general election called for the referendum result to be accepted.

It did, however, reject no deal as a viable option.



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