Labour’s support for a new referendum is a necessary condition to get one. But on its own it’s not quite enough. We now need to build the rest of the coalition – and, to do that, we’ll need to stay disciplined.
Jeremy Corbyn’s announcement this evening that “we are committed to… putting forward or supporting an amendment in favour of a public vote” could prove a historic milestone in the struggle to stop Brexit. Some people thought the Labour leader would never get there. But he is now clearly following his party’s policy – defeat the government’s deal, try to get an election, push for Labour’s own Brexit vision and, if all else fails, ask the people what they want.
The party has already been through the first two stages of the policy. This evening Corbyn also announced that he would put Labour’s own Brexit scheme to MPs on Wednesday. Nobody thinks they will agree to it. That means by Thursday the “public vote” will be the only stage left.
Sceptics will say that Corbyn has only taken this step because he wants to stop other Labour MPs defecting to The Independent Group founded last week. Even if that’s true, his conversion to the cause is reason to celebrate.
Others will point out that we don’t know for sure many details, including when Labour will bring things to a head in Parliament or what question it thinks the public should answer. This is true. Until the i’s are dotted and t’s crossed, there is scope for disappointment.
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That said, Labour will not support an amendment this week, a senior source told InFacts. That’s sensible, because the rest of the coalition hasn’t yet been assembled. We must not join battle until we have a majority in the Commons.
Labour is also supporting a “confirmatory” referendum, according to a briefing to MPs. This would be modelled on the so-called Kyle-Wilson amendment, named after two Labour backbenchers, which would ask the people whether they want to leave the EU with the prime minister’s deal. If they don’t, the UK would stay in the bloc.
One of Kyle-Wilson’s attractions is that it could help build the necessary coalition in the Commons. Some Labour MPs in “Leave” constituencies are reluctant to back a straightforward People’s Vote because they think it involves voting against Brexit. But if they support Kyle-Wilson, they can say they aren’t opposing Brexit.
Some Tory MPs may find this appealing too. They can say that, while they back the prime minister’s deal, there’s no majority for it in the Commons. Given that they don’t want to crash out with no deal at all, the only option is to put it to the people.
It will take a little time before all these stars align. But given the convulsions in the Tory party – with ministers threatening to resign this week if Theresa May doesn’t stop threatening to quit the EU with no deal – we may not have to wait long.
When the time is ripe, we must grab the opportunity and run with it.
The passage on Kyle-Wilson was updated shortly after publication in light of the briefing to Labour MPs