Sir John Curtice: Why Labour's Brexit focus has shifted from Leavers to Remainers

"Brexit did deep damage. Let me say this directly to our friends and allies in Europe. This government believes a deeper relationship is in the interest of the whole of Europe. This government was not trying to turn back the clock on Brexit."

"Labour's 2024 election manifesto did propose some renegotiation of the Trade and Co-operation Agreement that Boris Johnson negotiated on leaving the EU in 2020. In particular, it wanted to end EU customs checks on exports of food and agricultural products by aligning Britain's regulations of such products with those of the EU."

"Shortly after last autumn's Budget, the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer declared that Brexit had significantly hurt our economy and that Britain needed to keep moving towards a close relationship with the EU. Although the red lines in Labour's manifesto were apparently still to be kept intact."

The Labour government has undergone a significant shift in its approach to Brexit, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves publicly acknowledging that Brexit caused deep economic damage. While the party's 2024 manifesto proposed renegotiating the Trade and Co-operation Agreement—particularly to end EU customs checks on food and agricultural products through regulatory alignment—it maintained clear boundaries against rejoining the single market, customs union, or freedom of movement. This represents a notable change from Labour's 2019 election defeat, after which the party accepted the Brexit decision. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has declared that Brexit significantly hurt the economy and that Britain must pursue a closer EU relationship. The government's more ambitious approach reflects efforts to improve the country's sluggish economic performance through deeper post-Brexit engagement with Europe.

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