What Jeremy Corbyn gets right about Brexit, and what some on the Left continue to get wrong.

Jeremy Corbyn, and his hostility towards the European Union is back in the news. Just quite why this continues to be classed as “news” is slightly baffling. Corbyn is a Eurosceptic of long vintage, and takes a Bennite view of the European project. I myself voted to remain within a reformed EU, and although I have ideological issues with the EU, I believed it provided the best hope for tackling cross-border issues such as climate change and tax avoidance. However as a democrat I have accepted the referendum result. I have therefore found myself becoming increasingly frustrated at those on the Left who continue to question the public’s decision-making abilities. Indeed, they appear to have learnt nothing since the referendum, and are sustaining the very elitism that laid the foundations for Brexit last June. Furthermore, they have offered no solutions to the current economic problems Britain faces. Capitalism has so far been able to see off potential alternatives by being based upon the notion that it will make everyone better off, even if some benefit more than others. This theory has now been proven false, and to his credit Corbyn has taken the opportunity to free Labour from neoliberalism’s shackles, and outline a vision for an investment-led economic programme.
Although Corbyn campaigned to remain in the EU, he did so with very little enthusiasm. A quick glance at his Commons record reveals that he voted against the creation of the single market, the Maastricht Treaty and the Lisbon Treaty. He has also been a sceptic of the single currency on the basis that it created an undemocratic central bank with deflationary tendencies (Elliot, 2017). Last weekend on the Andrew Marr Show, Corbyn stated that the UK’s membership of the single market was inextricably linked with EU membership. The response to such a statement has been predictable, with many commentators pointing out that Switzerland, Norway and Iceland are members of the single market, but not members of the EU. However, they are essentially de-facto members of the EU (Bush, 2017). Furthermore, Brexit was driven by the desire to end free movement, the ability to have control over our own laws, and the possibility of increased funding for public services. Therefore, if we continue to have freedom of movement, continue to contribute large funds to the EU and remain subject to EU law (as would be the case within the single market), it becomes incredibly difficult to argue that the UK has actually delivered on the referendum result.
The current Labour leadership have come down hard on MP’s who have stated that Britain should remain in the single market, sacking three front benchers in the process. Divisions in the party are prevalent once more, with Labour’s leader in Wales Carwyn Jones directly contradicting Corbyn and Shadow Trade Minister Barry Gardiner that there was “no need to leave the single market even as we leave the EU”. This adds to the divisions that were created by Chuka Ummuna’s Commons amendment that demanded the government guarantee Britain’s place in the single market. Ummuna’s motion was extremely frustrating and unnecessary as it was clear to see it would never pass. The numbers in the Commons have shown that a majority of MP’s agree with Corbyn on the issue of the single market. Indeed, the Remain faction in the Commons equates to only one sixth of all MP’s (101), and one fifth of Labour MP’s (49). Moreover, and further adding to the confusion Ummuna has himself confirmed that he too would sacrifice access to the single market if it meant keeping the current freedom of movement rules (Bennett, 2017).
Having a reasoned debate about Brexit has become increasingly exasperating. There remain a vocal, but largely unrepresentative minority of ultra-Remainers and Leavers, who are simply intolerant of the others arguments. A recent YouGov poll has shown that 70% of Britons believe that Brexit must be enacted. Those who believe that Brexit can be stopped need to consider the consequences for our democracy. Imagine if a majority of the population had voted to remain, but the government of the day turned round and said “oh well, we are leaving anyway”? The ardent Remainers are suffering from confirmation bias, and continue to pounce upon every story that locates a problem that may or may not be Brexit related. Yes, there needs to be legitimate questions posed to prominent Leavers about what Brexit will look like. It is also incredibly infuriating to watch Brexiteers discover the basic truths that so called “experts” told them in the run up to the referendum. Nevertheless, those on the Left who maintain that a return to the status quo is the very best option need to survey the current economic and political landscape, and consider the opportunities Brexit offers to a potential Labour government.
For many workers in the UK, a return to the status quo is certainly not a desirable proposition. The UK economy has seen virtually no growth in per-capita incomes since the financial crisis in 2007. Not since the Napoleonic war has the country suffered such a protracted wage squeeze (Jones, 2017). We have a chronic balance of payments deficit, and growth has become dependent on consumers unhealthy appetite for debt. Perhaps most damning is the fact that the UK’s poorest regions are 20 years behind the south-east in terms of living standards. Corbyn and McDonnell are evidently wary of the risks that Brexit entails, and Shadow Brexit Secretary Kier Starmer has laid out “six tests” for a sensible withdrawal. Nonetheless, they also see that Brexit provides an opportunity to push for a new economic agenda; a radical socialist programme which would in the main be deemed illegal under European law (Elliot, 2017). Whist not completely outlawed by EU law, public ownership is severely discouraged within the EU. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) interpretation of the Treaty of the Functioning of the EU (TFEU) has steadily eroded the opportunities for public ownership (Guinan & Hanna, 2017). Indeed, Article 59 of the TFEU allows the European Council and Parliament to specifically liberalise services such as transport and energy. It is certainly much easier for member states to pursue liberalisation than re-nationalisation. Neoliberalism is enshrined within the EU, and it is somewhat ironic that some on the Left continue to champion the single market, who’s formation was driven and championed by a Thatcher led Conservative government.
Those on the Left that are in complete disarray about Brexit are continuing to resort to arguments based upon liberal economics. Such arguments reveal the complete disconnect between themselves and the lived experiences of those who have experienced continuous de-investment and de-industrialisation. Instead, the Left should focus on how we can restructure our economy for the benefit of the many, not the few. Corbyn has himself never seen anything particularly progressive about the European project, the impact of CAP on the developing world, TITIP, mass employment and the EU’s implicit bias towards crippling austerity. Post-referendum Labour are in a position to offer the public the possibility of widespread state ownership, managed and fair trade, and increased public investment. In pursuing such policies, a Labour government has the opportunity to re-establish control over the national economy which will be crucial in managing the dislocation and uncertainties of leaving the EU.
References
Bennett, O (2017) Chuka Ummuna: We Should Be Prepared To Sacrifice Single Market Membership To Axe Freedom of Movement. Huffigton Post (Online). Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/chuka-umunna-single-market-free-movement-brexit_uk_57e3e201e4b0db20a6e8b057
Bush, S (2017) What Jeremy Corbyn gets right about the single market. New Statesman (Online). Available at: http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/staggers/2017/07/what-jeremy-corbyn-gets-right-about-single-market
Elliot, L (2017) Why the moaning? If anything can halt capitalism’s fat cats, it’s Brexit. The Guardian [Online]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jul/21/capitalism-fat-cats-brexit-leaving-eu
Guinan, J & Hanna, T, M (2017) Lexit: the EU is a neoliberal project, so let’s do something different when we leave it. New Statesman (2017). Available at: http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/brexit/2017/07/lexit-eu-neoliberal-project-so-lets-do-something-different-when-we-leave-it
Jones, O (2017) Brexitland: With pay so low for this long, no wonder there’s anger in Sheffield. The Guardian (Online). Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/13/brexitland-vote-leave-sheffield-brexit-industrial-strategy