Wes Streeting's Bold Move and Its Political Implications
Wes Streeting, the former Health Secretary, has taken a significant step in the ongoing Labour leadership contest by explicitly calling for Britain to rejoin the European Union. This move has created a challenging situation for Andy Burnham, the Manchester mayor, who is currently campaigning in Makerfield, a constituency where 65% of voters supported Brexit in the 2016 referendum.
Burnham is facing a tough battle against Nigel Farage's Reform UK in the upcoming election on June 18. The outgoing Labour MP, Josh Simons, only managed a narrow majority of 5,300 votes, making it even more critical for Burnham to avoid drawing attention to his anti-Brexit stance. If Streeting is to have any chance of winning the leadership, he needs to focus on southern, Remain-supporting voters who are increasingly shifting their support to the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats.
Streeting views the pro-Brexit Red Wall seats in the North and Midlands as a lost cause, but Burnham does not have that luxury if he wants to win Makerfield, return to the Commons, and ultimately claim No. 10.
Reactions from Government Sources
Government sources, who are not aligned with any leadership camp, expressed frustration with Streeting's intervention. One source said, "Wes claims to be a unifying force, but he has done this for his pure, selfish ambition."
Streeting has confirmed his intention to stand in the contest to replace Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader. In a recent statement, he said, "Leaving the European Union was a catastrophic mistake. The biggest economic opportunity we have is on our doorstep. We need a new special relationship with the EU, because Britain's future lies with Europe – and one day, one day back in the European Union."
Farage's Response and Criticism
After Streeting's announcement, Nigel Farage responded with a strong statement, saying, "The North will be lost to Labour for ever." A Whitehall source added, "In the local election, voters sent a clear message: they are frustrated with a political system they no longer feel serves them. Wes's response? To attempt to reopen the most divisive debate in modern British politics and say that he would turn the next general election into a de facto second referendum. That is not leadership, and it isn't uniting our country. It is desperate self-interest – and a total betrayal of Labour values."
Another source criticized Streeting's approach, stating, "This is the one policy that uniquely serves to divide Britain and Wes has reached for it straight away. It looks like he seeks to impose five years of misery on the country. He claims to be a uniting leader but his first impactful thing has been to choose something to divide the country."
The source added, "This is a desperate attempt to shore up support based on identity politics and a culture war which frankly most people gave up on many years ago. Student politics."
Streeting's Campaign Strategy
At a fringe Labour event, Streeting addressed supporters, emphasizing that any move towards rejoining the EU would require a fresh mandate from the public. He said, "We do have to respect the fact that we left the European Union through a democratic choice, so we will need to, in future manifestos, seek a new mandate."
He also stated that he would not propose breaking a manifesto that the party stood on during the last general election, noting, "Frankly, trust in politics and politicians is in even shorter supply than money in our country."
Streeting expressed his willingness to campaign for Burnham in the by-election, saying, "We've got to make sure we deliver the change people wanted to see, that we go into the next election with an equally bold and ambitious plan."
A Contest of Ideas
Streeting attempted to frame his campaign as a contest of ideas rather than personalities, stating, "We need a proper contest where all candidates can put their best foot forward. It's got to be a battle of ideas, so that whoever wins comes out strong before it."
He acknowledged the threat posed by Farage, saying, "For the first time in Labour's history, our biggest opponents aren't the Conservatives, but Nigel Farage and Reform. Scottish and Welsh nationalism represents an existential threat to the future integrity of our entire country, but the English nationalism represented by Farage and Reform is a threat to the values and ideals that have made this country great."
Progressives, he added, understand this threat and want Labour to confront it, but they are increasingly losing faith in the party's ability to rise to the challenge.
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