The internal divisions in the Labor Party British have flourished again in recent hours and have once again called into question the authority of the prime minister, Keir Starmer. Again, with the same protagonist: the Minister of Health, Wes Streetingwhose figure has emerged in recent months as a possible replacement for Starmer in case the Labor leader fails to reverse the poor electoral forecasts. On this occasion, the controversy has arisen as a result of Streeting’s comments in which he defended the return of the United Kingdom to the customs uniona possibility that has been ruled out by Starmer repeatedly since he came to power in July 2024.
In an interview in ‘The Observer’, Streeting has attributed much of the economic difficulties what the United Kingdom is going through and has been in favor of taking another step in the approach to Brussels. “We have a level of debt that we must take very seriously. The best way to achieve greater growth in our economy is deepen our trade relations with the EU“, assured the minister. “The reason why leaving the EU has affected us so much as a country is because of the enormous economic benefits that being part of the EU brought us. single market and of the customs union”, he remarked.
Streeting has ruled out recovering freedom of movement with the EU, a marked red line set by the Executive, but has insisted on the importance of show determination in the approach to Brussels to distance itself from the discourse of the populist right-wing party Reform UKstaunch defender of Brexit. “We are not going to win the next elections by trying to imitate Reform’s speech,” he assured. “That’s not who we are. Those are not our values and we have to defeat them, not join them”.
Internal tension
Streeting’s words have increased the tension with Downing Streetwho has already accused the minister of orchestrating his own campaign to oust Starmer in the event that an electoral debacle is confirmed in the regional elections in Scotland and Wales and in the local elections in England next May. “It’s not even subtle.”a source close to the prime minister has assured the British press. “Wes [Streeting] this laying the groundwork for leadership and there’s nothing number 10 can do [de Downing Street] about it.”
But the truth is that the eventual return of the United Kingdom to the customs union has the majority support of the voters of Labor Party. According to a survey published by the newspaper ‘The Times’, the 80% of the party’s supporters are in favor, a figure similar to that of the voters of the Liberal Democratic Party (78%) and of the Verdes (75%). Something that confirms the growing inclination of British voters towards undo Brexit after years of failures and unfulfilled promises.
Approach to the EU
Starmer is aware of this trend and has again mentioned the Brexit – a taboo subject for Labor for a long time – as one of the main causes of economic difficulties that crosses the country. This change in his speeches has been added to the increasingly explicit gestures to resume relations with Brussels: the Government is working to close agreements such as the elimination of health controls and phytosanitary to agri-food products at customs; the return of the United Kingdom to the common electricity market or a youth mobility pact which would allow Britons under 30 to study and work in the EU, and vice versa, for a certain period. A first step in this direction has been the return of the United Kingdom to the Erasmus+ program from 2027.
But despite popular support among the center and left-wing electorate, Starmer has not wanted to go as far as his minister for fear of scaring the voters. Reform UK voterssince only one in five is in favor of returning to the customs union. Both this possibility and the return to the single market and the full recovery of freedom of movement remain outside the prime minister’s agenda. It remains to be seen if the pressure from his voters, and from members of his own party, manages to change his mind.
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