Second referendum is only way to beat Nigel Farage, warns Tom Watson

[Eugene]

Source: The Observer

Second referendum is only way to beat Nigel Farage, warns Tom Watson

Labour deputy leader in shock intervention that threatens to ignite row at party’s highest levels

Toby Helm and Michael Savage
Sat 20 Apr 2019 20.30 BST Last modified on Sat 20 Apr 2019 23.30 BST

Labour will never defeat Nigel Farage if it continues to “sit on the fence” over Brexit and offers only “mealy-mouthed” support for a second referendum, the party’s deputy leader says today.

In an extraordinary intervention that exposes the tensions at the top of the party over Brexit strategy, Tom Watson warns that Labour will lose to Farage’s new “far right” Brexit party in May’s European elections if it continues to give the impression that “we half agree with him”.

Writing in today’s Observer, Jeremy Corbyn’s deputy argues that Labour needs to give much clearer and more enthusiastic backing to another referendum and also spell out a positive, radical vision of how a Labour government could advance socialist values by working with other centre-left parties inside the European Union.

Stressing that Farage is a real threat not just to the Conservatives but also to Labour, he writes: “We cannot just sit back, watch this fight on the far right, and allow Farage to prosper with a backward-looking brand of politics that offers no solutions. Instead we must offer a radical alternative based on our values that speaks directly to the people we represent and demonstrate Labour has a way forward out of the crisis.”

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/apr/20/second-eu-referendum-only-way-to-beat-farage-says-watson

[marylandblue]

1. The UK is having the same problem the US is having. It's sad, but misery loves company.

[Thekaspervote]

2. My granddaughter's nanny is from Manchester. Smart, educated very savvy. She has always maintained

That brexit was not represented in a fair and honest way to the average Brit. They feel hood winked and want a second referendum ...that she feels would resoundingly say no to brexit

[T_i_B]

3. Labour's usual tactic in EU elections.....

...is to avoid talking about the EU and concentrate on stuff that wins votes in other elections.

This was their tactic when Labour had a really good EU policy. I don't expect that to change now that Labour has a rubbish EU policy. Maybe they still step up attacks on Remain parties in a bit to stop losing votes through sheer negativity.