The Independent view

Keir Starmer should back the EU youth mobility scheme

Editorial: Labour should stop being so frightened of its Brexit shadow

Saturday 20 April 2024 17:57 BST
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If Rishi Sunak missed a chance to reach out to young people, Keir Starmer has deliberately thrown one away
If Rishi Sunak missed a chance to reach out to young people, Keir Starmer has deliberately thrown one away (PA Wire)

Rishi Sunak has rejected the surprise proposal from Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, for a youth mobility scheme that would make it easier for young Britons to live, study and work in the EU.

Ms Von der Leyen said on Thursday that the commission would seek permission from EU member states to open negotiations for a scheme allowing UK citizens aged 18-30 to come to the EU, and EU young people to come to the UK.

The scheme would continue to exclude the UK from EU freedom of movement rules, requiring a visa, evidence of sufficient funds to sustain a living, and health insurance.

But the government has rejected the idea. A spokesperson said: “We are not introducing an EU-wide youth mobility scheme.” That is short-sighted, but perhaps not surprising. What is more disappointing is that the Labour Party has rejected it too – indeed, the official opposition was so keen to parade its Eurosceptic credentials that it rejected it before the government did.

To add frustration to the disappointment, both Labour and the Conservatives described the scheme as a return to free movement, despite the European Commission explicitly ruling out any connection. As Professor Anand Menon, director of UK in a Changing Europe at King’s College London, said, it is “utterly depressing that both of the major political parties, one of which will form a government after the next election, do not know the difference between free movement and a limited youth mobility scheme which involves visas”.

This is a terrible show of weakness by both the British government and the British government-in-waiting, which is how many people here and abroad regard the Labour Party.

Mr Sunak has made much of his pragmatic approach to tidying up some of the mess left behind by Boris Johnson’s slapdash Brexit deal. The prime minister deserves credit for fixing the worst problems of Northern Ireland’s borders and for restoring civilised relations with President Macron of France. Here was a chance for him to show that Brexit need not be seen, as it is by many young people, as a way of taking away from them the benefits of international cooperation.

But if Mr Sunak missed a chance, Sir Keir Starmer has deliberately thrown one away. He has the space to argue for a closer relationship with the EU. Most voters, even those who voted Leave eight long years ago, think that Brexit has been badly handled and are open to closer links with the EU.

Admittedly, the timing of the European Commission’s proposal is curious. It seems intended to spike British attempts to negotiate youth mobility deals with individual EU countries, such as France. But it has the effect of forcing the Labour Party to choose in the run-up to an election – and unfortunately, Sir Keir has chosen the cowardly option.

So it is left to independent voices in the Labour Party, such as Stella Creasy, the MP for Walthamstow who is chair of the Labour Movement for Europe, to condemn Tory “duplicity” over Europe: “They’ve actively tried to negotiate a youth visa scheme with several European countries; the EU offered to short-circuit the process; but, panicked by their Brexiteer backbenches, they have rejected the whole idea and youth opportunities with it.”

And Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, has finally seized the chance to speak up for Euro-pragmatism: “It would be a much-needed boost to our economy, especially hospitality and tourism; it would offer great new opportunities to young British people to work abroad; and it would be a crucial step towards fixing our broken relationship with Europe.”

Sir Keir should realise that the overwhelming majority of the British people want their youngsters to be able to work and study in the EU, and have no problem with visa-regulated access for young EU citizens to do likewise here. Labour must stop being so afraid of its Brexit shadow.

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