Labour conference: Jeremy Corbyn says 'there's going to be a lot of movement' of EU workers after Brexit

The Labour leader said he is ready to 'listen' to party members who want to stay in the single market

Jeremy Corbyn has said there will be "a lot of movement" of EU workers after Brexit if the UK wants a successful trading relationship with Europe.

The Labour leader said he recognised an "effective" economic relationship with Europe required a large degree of movement of people across the Channel and argued their ease of access should sealed in the UK's Brexit deal.

In an interview marking the start of Labour's conference in Brighton, he said he was also ready to "listen" to party members who want the UK to stay in the EU's single market.

Labour recently shifted its position on Brexit, to one where it called for the UK to remain in the single market and abide by its rules - including free movement and adherence to the European Court - during a transition period out of the bloc.

Many Labour members and MPs are pushing for that commitment to be extended. Asked about the drive, Mr Corbyn went on: "I understand what they are saying. I understand the points they are making and I understand the importance of workers moving from one place to the other.

"But I also understand that there is an abuse of free movement by some of the employers, who have grotesquely exploited some very low paid workers.

"That has to stop. But we have to recognise that in the future we are going to need people to work in Europe and people from Europe are going to need to work here. There is going to be a lot of movement," the leader said on BBC's Andrew Marr programme.

In an attempt to offer a distinct alternative to the Conservative party, 30 senior figures, including Labour MPs, have written an open letter calling for the party to alter its stance on the market and customs union.

The signatories to the letter published in The Observer, including former shadow cabinet members Chuka Umunna and Heidi Alexander, as well as one of Mr Corbyn's closest allies in his early days as leader, Clive Lewis, said the party should go further in its Brexit stance to protect jobs and workers' rights.

The letter, which was also signed by the TSSA union's general secretary, Manuel Cortes, former Northern Ireland secretary Lord Hain and Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson, said Labour needed to present an alternative to the Tories' “destructive Brexit”.

Pressed on the Andrew Marr show to give his views on the on free movement and the single market, Mr Corbyn said: "Inside of Europe a lot of people are going to come and work here and a lot of people from Britain are going to go and work there, there has to be an agreement on it and how it is achieved. Go to any Airbus office, go to any Rolls Royce place, any of those places.

"There are engineers coming from Europe on a daily basis and going back, all the time. You can't stop that and you shouldn't stop that."

Labour's shift towards a more jobs and economy focussed Brexit has put pressure on Ms May's Tories to alter their approach, with the Prime Minister announcing on Friday that she wants the UK to remain in the single market, adhereing to its rules for a two-year transition after March 2019.