Our exit from the EU won’t be a focus of the spring statement, but it should be. Most now accept the need for closer ties As the chancellor ekes out every last billion this week, it’s worth stepping back and remembering one key reason why Britain fares worse than its neighbours: Brexit. On Monday, MPs debated whether to rejoin the EU following the success of a public petition that gained 134,000 signatures. Don’t hold your breath. The government replied by quoting its not-until-hell-freezes-over manifesto pledge: “there will be no return to EU membership”. But the global Trumpquake has shaken all certainties, upended all that seemed solid. The European defence emergency has made talk of Brexit and its future less taboo on both sides of the Channel. Close observers note the ice breaking. “Things are moving in the right direction,” says Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform (CER).Nonetheless, Labour is so paralysed by Brexit that despite its hunt for growth, it has said noth...
Polly Toynbee argues that while Chancellor Rachel Reeves focuses on economic growth, she avoids acknowledging Brexit as a major impediment to that growth. Despite growing acceptance of the need for closer ties with the EU and shifting political landscapes, Labour remains hesitant to address the economic costs of leaving the EU.
