Keir Starmer rejects EU customs union after Lammy comments

Sir Keir Starmer reiterated that the EU does not plan to rejoin the customs union after the deputy prime minister said countries in such unions were seeing improvements in their economies.

Speaking on a podcast on Thursday, David Lammy said it was “obvious” that Brexit was damaging the British economy.

He added that rejoining the EU’s customs union was “not our policy at the moment” but underlined that Türkiye was seeing growth as a result of its union with the bloc.

Stating that economic growth is his government’s top priority, the prime minister said he wants to establish closer trade relations with the EU but does not want to break the Labor Party’s post-Brexit commitments.

Labour’s election manifesto ruled out taking Britain back into the EU customs union, where the remaining 27 member states impose the same duties on goods imported from outside the bloc.

The party also said it would not rejoin the EU’s single market, where countries pass common laws in some areas to facilitate trade in goods and services.

Instead, the government is trying to forge closer economic ties through a series of side agreements covering food standards, youth visas, carbon pricing and rules on electricity trading.

However, the issue has been on the political agenda again in recent weeks, with the Liberal Democrats putting forward the idea of ​​a new customs union agreement with the EU.

Speaking to The News Agents podcast, Lammy said: “It is clear that leaving the European Union has caused huge damage to our economy, taken us out of a key market and created serious friction.

Asked if he would like to see the UK in a customs union with the EU, he replied: “That’s not our policy at the moment, we’re not at that point at the moment.”

But he emphasized that Türkiye, which is in a customs union with the bloc, “seems to be benefiting from this and seeing growth in its economy.”

Türkiye’s agreement, which does not apply to agricultural products or services, reduces the need to prove the origin of many goods it trades with the EU; this has been a major source of trade friction for the UK since Brexit.

The model has previously been proposed as a more realistic option for strengthening ties rather than rejoining the EU’s customs union.

But the regulation significantly restricts Türkiye’s ability to pursue an independent trade policy, a key promise made by Brexiteers.

Asked about Lammy’s remarks on Friday, Sir Keir said: “The position we took was clearly stated in the manifesto and we are following it.”

He claimed Britain’s relationship with Europe had “completely reset” since Labor took office last year.

Speaking to reporters earlier, a Downing Street spokesman appeared to downplay Lammy’s comments, reiterating that the government would seek to rebuild ties “sticking to our red lines”.

He added that Labor wanted to support growth through “open trading relationships”; He pointed to the government’s trade and tariff reduction agreements with India and the US – two deals made possible by Brexit.

The Liberal Democrats have heeded Lammy’s words, calling on him to “vote with us” next week, when the party hopes to force a vote on the customs union.

Al Pinkerton, the party’s Europe spokesman, added: “The penny is dropping on how a customs union is the best way to solve the economic problems plaguing Britain. It’s time for Lammy to put his money where his mouth is.”