Thread by @GeorgePeretzQC

As usual, a perceptive piece from Peter. A couple of comments on his point about lack of clarity on what “fixing the holes” in the TCA actually means.

https://twitter.com/pmdfoster/status/1443657540403924999

In thinking about what Labour’s policy should be on that there are two sorts of uncertainty. One is uncertainty about where the country will be - and where the public mood will be - in 2 or 3 years time.

That is, to an extent, fair enough: provided it doesn’t stop Labour from trying to shape that mood rather than simply responding to it.

The other uncertainty is what the EU will be open to negotiating. That is critical, as it is going to be a key part of Labour’s offer in 23/24 that (unlike the current government) it won’t make promises it can’t honour.

That uncertainty is real: it is entirely unclear what the EU would be prepared to look at on issues such as mobility, SPS arrangements, smoothing out customs and regulatory checks at the border.

And, understandably, the EU has other priorities than giving thought to the possibility of a different U.K. government in 2-3 years time.

But it is worth some work on the EU side - and worth some discussion, at least informally, with Labour and other opposition parties.

At some point the U.K. pendulum is likely to swing towards a more realistic relationship with the EU. And the EU needs to work out how it deals with a close neighbour at roughly the same economic level.

For example, are generous mobility provisions allowing free travel, study and residence but some restrictions on working and receipt of benefits acceptable? Would it be acceptable for the U.K. to “hook in” to the EFTA Court for some types of dispute resolution?

(Those are only examples: plenty more issues.)

It seems to me that a key task for Labour, and for those in the EU who see a real EU interest in establishing a better and stable relationship with its large, close, neighbour, to open lines of communication and to think through what could, realistically, be ways forward.