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Jeremy Corbyn, welcome to the Final Say alliance

The idea of a fresh vote to settle the issue is mainstream, well supported across society and, now, has gained the backing, albeit a little hedged, of the main opposition party

Tuesday 09 July 2019 16:51 BST
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Like every other glacially paced step Labour has taken in recent months, this has been painfully won by pressure exerted by the mass of the party
Like every other glacially paced step Labour has taken in recent months, this has been painfully won by pressure exerted by the mass of the party

Finally. Finally, Labour has put a Final Say referendum on its agenda. At the moment, it is about as good as it gets with the Labour Party and at least confirms the positive trajectory that has been the pattern ever since the last general election. It’s progress.

Where previously all the talk was of a general election or a vague “public vote”, now the heavier emphasis, if implicitly, is on a second Brexit referendum. And where, before, Labour reserved its position, or even said that Remain could not be on the ballot paper, Jeremy Corbyn has committed his party to campaign for Remain.

The confection is still covered in a few layers of fudge. It leaves open what a Labour government would do in power. That is less significant than it seems. First, the general thrust of Labour policy is moving clearly to a democratic endorsement of any Brexit, either a Labour or a Tory version, with a tendency for Labour to support Remain in any case. Staying in the EU is, after all, what about 80 per cent of Labour members want.

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