Brexit: Unison to oppose Corbyn and throw weight behind Labour endorsing Remain

Decision could tip the balance in favour of Remain in a series of crunch votes at the party's Brighton conference

Anti-Brexit campaigners won a major boost at Labour’s annual conference in Brighton as it emerged that the Unison union will back a motion committing the party to fight for Remain in any EU referendum.

With grassroots members, unions and MPs split over the way forward on Brexit, the decision by the country’s largest trade union could prove decisive in a set of crunch votes on Monday afternoon.

Addressing conference shortly before the votes, shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer announced that a Labour government will legislate "immediately" for a second EU referendum to take place six months after it takes office.

And in comments which left no doubt about his personal support for a Remain vote, Starmer said to applause: "I have a very simple message today: If you want a referendum - Vote Labour. If you want a final say on Brexit - Vote Labour. If you want to fight for Remain - Vote Labour. Labour will let the people decide."

It is understood that Unison, led by Dave Prentis, will vote against a statement put forward by the ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) endorsing leader Jeremy Corbyn’s position of putting off a decision on which side to back until after a general election.

Instead, it will back a motion supported by more than 80 constituency Labour parties calling on the party to fight for a second referendum and campaign “energetically” in favour of Remain when it comes.

TSSA, the transport staff union, will also oppose the NEC statement and throw its weight behind campaigning for Remain.

(AFP/Getty (AFP/Getty)

But with Len McCluskey's Unite union and GMB both firmly behind the NEC statement, the scene is set for a knife-edge set of votes, with the possibility that conference will vote in favour of both the Remain and "wait and see" options.

In this scenario, it is understood that a final decision on Labour's position would be put off until a "Clause 5" meeting to finalise the party's manifesto after an election is called.

The development came as the highly influential founder of the Momentum movement Jon Lansman said delegates should feel free to “vote with their conscience”.

Following a meeting of Momentum's executive at which he is understood to have clashed with other senior figures backing the leadership's position, Mr Lansman denounced the process by which the NEC statement was finalised in a hurried round of emails on Sunday as “a travesty”.

“I’m completely supportive of Jeremy's leadership but I’m incredibly disappointed with the process by which today’s NEC statement on Brexit was produced,” he said in a tweet. “There was no meeting, no discussion, no consultation with the membership.

“On one of the biggest issues of the day, this is a travesty. Across the membership there are many different views on Brexit, and on conference floor members should feel free to vote with their conscience.”

It is understood that the Unison leadership do not regard their decision to vote against the NEC position as a move against Mr Corbyn.

The union believes that the only way for Labour to win the election expected within the next few months is for the party to adopt a clear and unambiguous position on Britain’s future relations with Europe.

The Musician's Union has also said it would be opposing the NEC statement, saying: "Staying in the EU is still the best option for musicians."

Most other unions, including powerful affiliates Unite and GMB, are understood to be supporting the ruling body's position, after hammering out the compromise earlier this year.

Mr McCluskey, the Unite general secretary, told delegates: "I implore you, please give Jeremy the support he needs later, so that prime minister Corbyn can lead us to a bright new dawn."