Health Secretary Wes Streeting has been accused of advocating for a partial reversal of Brexit to improve his chances of eventually succeeding Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader. The allegations follow his public suggestion that the UK should consider rejoining the EU customs union to boost economic growth.
Brexit Comments Spark Leadership Speculation
In an interview with the Observer, Mr Streeting described the Prime Minister's current post-Brexit deal with Brussels as a 'good start'. However, he argued that the best way to stimulate the economy would be through a 'closer trading relationship' with the European Union, explicitly indicating support for rejoining the customs union.
This position directly contradicts one of Sir Keir Starmer's core political 'red lines' and breaches the party's election manifesto, which ruled out such a move. The Prime Minister has flatly rejected the idea of rejoining the customs union.
Internal Party Backlash and Polling Data
The intervention has infuriated allies of Sir Keir and prompted criticism from within the Labour Party. Veteran Labour MP Graham Stringer labelled Mr Streeting's move as 'opportunistic'. He suggested it was an early manoeuvre in a potential leadership contest, timed around the anticipated poor results for Labour in the May local elections.
Mr Stringer told Times Radio: 'I think it's a very complicated issue and it's just Wes being opportunistic knowing that, I think it's nearly 30 percent, of the Labour Party membership is in London and most of those people seem to be in favour of rejoining the EU.'
Despite the leadership's stance, YouGov polling indicates that 80 per cent of Labour voters from the party's 2024 election landslide would support rejoining the customs union.
Leadership Ambitions and Denials
Mr Streeting is increasingly viewed as being on leadership manoeuvres, alongside figures like Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, as Sir Keir faces a challenging electoral period.
Last month, Mr Streeting was the target of a botched political attack by Sir Keir's allies, which reportedly backfired and instead boosted his standing with fellow Labour MPs.
When questioned directly about his ambitions, the Health Secretary insisted Sir Keir had his 'absolute support' and diplomatically avoided ruling himself out. 'I'm diplomatically ducking the question to avoid any more of the silly soap opera we've had in the last few months,' he said. He added that the closer he saw the pressures of the top job, the more he wondered why anyone would want it.
In a further break from party unity, Mr Streeting also suggested he supported an Australian-style ban on social media for children under the age of 16, a policy not currently endorsed by the Prime Minister.
