Andrew Marr tells John McDonnell Brexit offer would be 'most unloved, orphan' deal ever

John McDonnell has said Jeremy Corbyn will be an 'honest broker' in any EU renegotiation, should Labour win the general election. Picture: IAN BURT - Credit: Archant

A new Brexit deal thrashed out by Labour could be the ‘most unloved, orphan offer ever’ because of the party’s unwillingness to commit to supporting leave or remain, television host Andrew Marr has suggested.

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell says he would not stay neutral in a referendum on a Labour Brexit deal, but does not say which side he would campaign for #Ridge.

Follow live updates on the show here: https://t.co/L2rnpZjTfv pic.twitter.com/VtkgJCTlw4
— Sophy Ridge on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) November 24, 2019

Shadow cabinet members have come under fire in recent days for Labour’s confused position on Brexit, which would see the party renegotiate the UK’s withdrawal agreement with Brussels and then put it back to the British people in a second referendum.

Jeremy Corbyn told Question Time this week that he would remain neutral in the campaign to give himself credibility in carrying out the result, whatever that turns out to be.

However other Labour figures have refused to say which side they would campaign for, while shadow education secretary Angela Rayner told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show that the question of whether the government would support its own deal was “a hypothetical”.

Scoffing at that answer, Marr told Rayner: “As things stand, you get a deal, you bring it back. The prime minister is neutral, most of the senior members of the cabinet are in favour of remain. What we know about the party is that it is a party of remain.

“This is going to be the most unloved, orphan offer to the British people ever. It’s going to be a referendum between staying inside the EU and an offer no-one seems to be speaking up for.

“Who’s going to be leading the pro Jeremy Corbyn-negotiated deal if it’s not Jeremy Corbyn, it’s not his shadow cabinet and it’s not the Labour Party? Who’s going to be doing it?”

Rayner said it was wrong to assume most people in the Labour Party are remainers and said: “We’ve said that the most important thing is that people have the final say.

“What we’re clear on is that people will have the ultimate choice in what happens.”

Speaking on Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday, John McDonnell said he would “wait to see the details of the deal we negotiate” before making up his mind about which side to campaign on.

However he said: “I was in the negotiations with the Conservatives for six weeks. I couldn’t see a deal emerging that was better than remain.”

He said Corbyn’s role in the negotiations, should Labour win power, would be as an “honest broker”.