so apparently at shadow cabinet meeting this morning Labour leadership committed itself to abstain on Lords EEA amendment on single market next Tuesday - even though it may have been able to defeat the government...am told there will be “fireworks” with backbenchers
instead (and this has just been announced) Labour is tabling four separate amendments which sound more vague....on “access” to single market, common minimum standards, shared institutions/regulations and “no new impediments to trade”
it's a clever enough way of throwing a few scraps to vociferous Labour remainer members, but be in no doubt: this won't be enough to prevent a rebellion next Tuesday by scores of Labour MPs
so when the amendment talks about "shared institutions and regulations", the Corbyn office sees this as regulators (aviation, nuclear, medicines) that May is already trying to keep us in....rather than other institutions
one person familiar with the thinking described it to me as a "repackaging of existing policy to harry the government", which is about right
in defence of Team Corbyn, it's been pointed out to me that the EEA amendment wouldn't have the numbers in the Commons either: loads of MPs voiced opposition to EEA membership at a recent PLP meeting....
anyway the moral is: you may think you’re cynical but sometimes you aren’t cynical enough
last night Corbyn privately met MPs from the Tribune (soft left) group, am told that 8 out of 13 who spoke said they would vote for EEA membership....looks like he still has a rebellion on his hands...
last month I wrote that only one of the Lords Brexit amendments was likely to get through the Commons next Tuesday: the one on a "meaningful" vote. That still looks to be the case ft.com/content/a64925…
fact alert: apologies but Corbyn wasn’t at the Tribune gathering, though the 8:13 point holds true
the reason that amendment is a really big deal is that (unlike a previous meaningful vote amendment in December, keep up at the back) it would prevent a no-deal Brexit ie crashing out on to WTO tariffs - that’s the one to watch on Tuesday
pun of the day goes to @paulwaugh memo entitled "Starmer Chameleon"
as for idea that Tory rebels might back the Starmer amendment, here’s @Anna_Soubry quote:
“If you read the Labour amendment, you might think it had been crafted by Boris Johnson because it is perfectly representative of the cake-and-eat-it position of Her Majesty’s Government”
“If you read the Labour amendment, you might think it had been crafted by Boris Johnson because it is perfectly representative of the cake-and-eat-it position of Her Majesty’s Government”
