Labour is calling for the UK to agree a security pact with the EU following the wake-up call of the Ukraine invasion, as part of its drive to “make Brexit work”.
Boris Johnson must end his “petty diplomatic spats with our neighbours” and rebuild relationships, the party says – arguing last year’s Integrated Review of Foreign Policy is out of date.
That review rejected formal cooperation with Brussels, arguing the Indo-Pacific region and, in particular, China will be more important in the post-Brexit ‘Global Britain’ era.
Mr Johnson had rejected the EU’s push for a defence and security pact in the Christmas 2020 Brexit deal, despite Theresa May’s attempt to make it a priority.
Now David Lammy, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary, will argue it is time for an urgent rethink, “as war ravages parts of our continent”.
“The government has pursued an Indo-pacific tilt, but it must not do so at the cost of our commitments to European security,” he will say, on a visit to the US.
“We need to put past Brexit divisions behind us, stop seeking rows with European partners, and use this moment to explore all possibilities to renew relations with European allies through a new UK-EU security pact.”
Delivering a speech to the Institute for Global Leadership in Boston, Mr Lammy is expected to say: “Britain has left the EU. The task now is to make Brexit work.”
Labour is arguing for the rebirth of the ‘E3 format’ between France, Germany and the UK – which emerged in nuclear negotiations with Iran – warning it has not met since late 2020.
The Integrated Review, published in April 2021, contained “practically no detail” on how the UK will cooperate with its European allies, the party says.
The stance echoes the call from the Conservative European Forum for a defence pact, to allow the UK to quickly “deploy forces around Europe”, it said.
In Boston, Mr Lammy will set out four principles in response to the “age of authoritarians”, which are:
* Ending government defence “cuts” – with the Army set to shrink by 9,500 soldiers to 72,500 by 2025.
* Ending Britain’s dependence on dirty fossil fuels from authoritarian states – by matching Labour’s £28bn-a year green investment plans.
* Stopping the UK facilitating “dirty finance from corrupt elites from across the world”.
* Restoring the UK’s ‘soft power’ – by reversing overseas aid cuts, as well as supporting the BBC World Service and the British Council.
Mr Lammy will say the UK “must adjust our mindset” because it was wrong to believe that “the era of wars between states was over.
“We reshaped our security, defence, intelligence and diplomacy to tackle different threats – allowing core capabilities to dwindle,” he will say.
“Just months before Russia’s invasion, Boris Johnson said that the era of tank battles on European soil was over. Now we see tanks rolling across frontiers in Europe.”
