Leftwingers gather to exchange ideas on a People’s Brexit

CAMPAIGNERS will discuss tomorrow how Brexit could deliver for the left as the Tory Party sinks deeper into crisis.

With Prime Minister Theresa May heading to Brussels yesterday to rally European Union leaders to the defence of a Brexit deal condemned by Leavers and Remainers alike, pro-EU MPs have been ramping up the pressure for a second referendum to reverse the verdict of 2016.

Jo Stevens, a People’s Vote campaign supporter and Cardiff Central Labour MP, argued that the public deserved a “real choice” between leaving the EU on Ms May’s terms or “sticking with the deal we’ve got inside Europe.”

But her pro-Brexit party colleague Graham Stringer told the Morning Star that “we should be celebrating the largest democratic vote in UK history.

“Instead, the Establishment is trying to ensure that the EU continues to be a playground for multinational companies,” said Mr Stringer, who will speak at tomorrow’s meeting.

“It’s vital that Labour restores its traditional position — opposing regressive taxes like VAT, protecting workers’ rights from institutions like the European Court of Justice and supporting growth and jobs by allowing state aid. Labour must be in favour of democracy.”

Institute for Public Policy Research economist Grace Blakeley said that the PM’s deal “shows that the Conservative Party and the European Union have the same priority — preventing a Labour government from implementing a sweeping programme of economic reform.

“We need a general election and a Labour government to return to Brussels to negotiate a settlement that allows for state intervention in the British economy, to build an economy that works for people who live off work, not those who live off wealth.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd admitted yesterday that a “no deal” Brexit was unlikely to get through the Commons, undermining government claims that refusing to back the accord between Brussels and Ms May would inevitably lead to Britain crashing out of the EU without an agreement.

The People’s Brexit meeting takes place at Hamilton House, London WC1H 9BD from 7pm. Speakers include Guardian economics editor Larry Elliott, IPPR economist Grace Blakeley, Graham Stringer MP, former Syriza MP Costas Lapavitsas, RMT general secretary Mick Cash, Unison North West regional convenor Paula Barker (personal capacity), Communist Party general secretary Robert Griffiths and John Rees of the Counterfire editorial board.