Keir Starmer Says A Brexit Transition Under Labour Could Last Four Years

25 September 2017, 19:28

A Brexit transitional period under Labour could last up to four years, the Shadow Brexit Secretary has told LBC.

Sir Keir Starmer said any temporary arrangement with the EU after March 2019 should be “as short as possible but as long as necessary”.

Last week Theresa May proposed a two-year implementation period during which Britain’s relationship with the bloc would remain virtually unchanged.

Speaking to Iain Dale at the Labour Conference in Brighton, Sir Keir said any transition should “not be rushed” - questioning the government’s ability to strike a deal in the proposed time frame.

He said: “If it can be within two years then all very well and good. In the past, and I’ll say it again, probably between about two and four years depending on the negotiations.

“The shorter it is the better actually because businesses don’t want uncertainty, but what I don’t want is it rushed.

“If it takes more than two years to get it right then I’m in the business of getting it right.”