Corbyn in general election call after Labour mauled in European poll

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn says his priority remains a general election, despite calls to change direction after the party suffered a mauling from voters in the European elections.

Sir Keir Starmer, shadow Brexit secretary, has said a second referendum is the “only way” to break the Brexit impasse.

In his first comments since the election result, Mr Corbyn told the BBC his priority has not changed.

He said: “The priority at the moment, I think, is for this Government to call for a general election and actually have a general election so we can decide the future.

“There’s no majority in Parliament, there’s no legislative programme and Parliament has basically been given nothing to do by the Government.

“I think that is a demand that should be made and made as strongly as possible.”

Mr Corbyn did not rule out another referendum, saying any Brexit deal should be put back to the people and that the UK should not be allowed to “crash out” with no deal.

He said: “John (McDonnell) has also pointed out, and I support this, that any final deal has to be put to a public vote.

“What this party does is supports an agreement with the EU to prevent crashing out, supports putting that proposal when agreed to a public vote.”

Mr Corbyn’s position appeared to be in conflict with Sir Keir, who said the public should be given the choice between a “credible leave option and remain”.

Senior Labour figures called for the party to take a more strident position after it received a drubbing which saw it lose half its MEPs and take just 15% of the vote.

Sir Keir, writing on Twitter, said: “It’s no use trying to hide from these very disappointing results. We need to reflect hard and listen to our members, supporters and voters.

“The only way to break the Brexit impasse is to go back to the public with a choice between a credible leave option and remain.”

He added: “But as we move forward on this, we must remain united and able to speak to and for the country as a whole whichever way people voted in 2016.”

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said Labour could unite the party and country by “taking (the) issue back to people in a public vote”.

But shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon insisted Labour had the right approach in seeking to appeal to both Leavers and Remainers – even though it was not suitable for the European elections.

Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry and deputy Labour leader Tom Watson both called for a more strident position from the party on the issue of a second referendum.

In a statement, the Labour leader said the EU elections had become “a proxy second referendum”.

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He said: “With the Conservatives disintegrating and unable to govern, and Parliament deadlocked, this issue will have to go back to the people, whether through a general election or a public vote.”

He added: “Over the coming days, we will have conversations across our party and movement, and reflect on these results on both sides of the Brexit divide.”

Labour won just 10 MEPs in England and Wales and although Scotland’s result is not yet official, Mr Corbyn’s party is on course to lose its two MEPs there. In 2014, the party won 20 MEPs across the UK.

Mr Corbyn’s party trailed in third place, behind the Brexit Party and Liberal Democrats nationally.

Mr Burgon said: “I think the message of trying to bring people together who voted Remain and Leave is the right message.

“It was never going to work in this kind of low-turnout EU election where the people most interested in this important issue of Brexit, whether it is to Remain or Leave, came out to vote. A general election would be very different.”

He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that Labour could support a referendum to stop a new Tory leader taking the UK out of the EU without a deal.

“Whether it be a no confidence vote in the Government, a general election or a public vote, we will use whatever mechanism necessary to stop a disastrous no-deal Brexit,” he said.

Mr McDonnell said Labour could not hide from the “hit” it took in the elections.

Faced with the prospect of a “Brexiteer extremist” taking over from Theresa May, a public vote would “unite our party and country”.

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Mr Watson said the party cannot go into a general election without a clear position on a second referendum and a special conference may be needed to decide a Brexit policy.

He tweeted a link to a survey on his website, asking members how the party should agree a new Brexit policy.

He said: “Following the disastrous EU election results, Labour urgently needs to re-think its Brexit position and realign with members and voters.”

Ms Thornberry – who was Labour’s representative on the BBC’s election programme – tore into her party’s position live on air.

She said: “We went into an election where the most important issue was ‘what was our view on leaving the European Union?’ and we were not clear about it.

“We were not clear on the one single thing that people wanted to hear and that wasn’t their fault.

“We sent people out to campaign on that and, unfortunately, we just weren’t clear enough.”

She said: “I fear we will have no deal and we must be clear it will be a disaster for the country so we must have a second referendum.”

Tottenham MP David Lammy accused Labour of “hiding” on the Brexit issue but now needed to campaign to remain in the EU.

“Labour tried to ride two horses in this race,” he said. “We fell flat on our faces and got trampled.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said it was an “extremely disappointing” election for Labour and called for Article 50 to be withdrawn.

“I’d like to say thank you to everyone who voted and to all our candidates and to every Labour member and activist who campaigned so hard over the last few weeks,” he tweeted.

“Labour has always helped ensure that the EU has led the way helping to address some of the most significant challenges of our time – from tackling climate change to improving workers’ rights.

“With the Prime Minister having resigned and Parliament in gridlock, it’s crystal clear what must happen now: Article 50 should be withdrawn to stop the clock ticking down towards a no-deal Brexit, and the British public given the final say, with the option of staying in the EU.”