Skip to content

Labour's Brexit poll policy could be a 'fudge', says Smith

BBC Owen Smith and Jeremy CorbynBBC
Owen Smith said that any motion to put Labour's stance on whether to back another referendum could be "watered down"

Labour's stance on whether to hold a further EU referendum could be a "fudge", a former UK party leadership contender fears.

Pressure is increasing on the leadership to commit to a poll on the Brexit deal at the party's conference.

Jeremy Corbyn has said he would "adhere" to any decision made by members at this week's party conference.

Pontypridd MP Owen Smith fears members could be given a "watered down" option.

Senior UK Labour figures have repeatedly said a referendum is one option "on the table", depending on what happens with Brexit, but both Mr Corbyn and deputy leader Tom Watson have indicated they would prefer the issue to be resolved by a general election.

A number of constituency parties from Wales are among those calling for the Labour policy on Brexit to be put to a vote at the annual conference, which starts on Sunday in Liverpool.

On Sunday Mr Corbyn told national newspapers while he was not calling for a new vote he would back any decision made by members at the party conference.

Labour's official position is to respect the 2016 Brexit referendum result, and not to call for a new one but to "leave all options on the table" if a deal is not agreed by Parliament, including a new election.

But Mr Smith, who unsuccessfully challenged Mr Corbyn for the party's top job in 2016, told BBC Wales Sunday Supplement programme he feared any question on a further Brexit vote put to members would be a "fudge".

He said that while the news was a "clear signal that [Corbyn] is prepared to shift his position", the exact details of any motion to be put before the conference were not yet known.

"It may be watered down somewhat, it may not be as clear cut as Labour advocates a second poll of the people," he said.

"It may also not change our party policy given that we adopted a similar policy two years ago."

Carwyn Jones
Carwyn Jones has said there should be a general election if the devolved parliaments reject the final Brexit deal

At the Labour conference in Liverpool, Carwyn Jones said the party faced "a fluid situation" and repeated his call for the party to have a clear position in place by November at the latest.

He told BBC Sunday Politics Wales: "I think we do need to have a defined position by October or November. Why? Because that's the time when there might be a deal on the table or not.

"It think that's the crucial time.

"But it's inevitable that as circumstances change people will start looking at what the best approach should be."

But Mr Corbyn dismissed the timetable and told the BBC's Sunday Politics Wales programme: "I'm not quite sure why November at the earliest has been brought in to his calculations".