Many voters say #brexit will barely factor into their decision in the UK general election, but the truth is no party will be able to meet its manifesto pledges if the UK crashes out of the EU. Here’s where the UK parties stand on #brexit and how your vote can make a difference.
We believe in a strong UK inside of a strong EU. Our team is pan-political: we do not endorse any one party. Instead, we are providing factual information on UK candidates who support the concept of a strong UK in a strong EU, and we trust voters to make the best judgement with that information.
Find out which pro-European candidate has the best chance of winning in your constituency
We have ranked the main UK parties on where they stand against #brexit. Use the tabs to jump between each:
Want a referendum on final deal & will fight against #brexit
The Liberal Democrats are strongly pro-European and want to stop #brexit:
- Want a referendum on the final #brexit deal
- Will campaign for the UK to stay in the EU
- Want to stay in the EU’s single market & customs union
- Support freedom of movement
- Want to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in the UK
Want a referendum on the final #brexit deal
The Green party of England & Wales say they want to put #brexit in the people’s hands:
- Want a referendum on the final #brexit deal
- Would give the UK Parliament a vote on the final #brexit deal
- Support the EU’s social & environmental protections
- Want to stay in the EU’s single market & customs union
- Support freedom of movement
- Want to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in the UK
- If the UK leaves, they would bring forward a ‘Great Reform Bill’
Want to have its #brexit cake and eat it
Labour has a somewhat puzzling approach to #brexit:
- Seems to want to leave EU single market and customs union…
…yet continue to have all benefits & no EU trade barriers (tariff or non-tariff)
Note: This is impossible without accepting the same regulations as EU members and will likely also require paying for access to single market. - UK Parliament gets a vote on final #brexit deal
- Wants to keep current EU security arrangements
- Including: Europol, Eurojust and European Arrest Warrant arrangements.
Note: this will only be possible if UK stays under jurisdiction of European Court of Justice.
- Including: Europol, Eurojust and European Arrest Warrant arrangements.
- No support for freedom of movement
- Wants to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in the UK
- If the UK leaves, they will bring forward an ‘EU Rights & Protections Bill’
Heading for an extreme/chaotic/destructive #brexit
The Tories have made a series of impossible #brexit demands. Worse, they seem happy to plunge the country off a cliff if they can’t achieve them:
- No deal is better than a bad deal
Note: it’s really not - UK Parliament gets a vote on final #brexit deal
- But if it votes against it then they will take the UK out without a deal anyway
- Leave European Court of Justice jurisdiction
Note: access to EU security arrangements depends on accepting European Court of Justice jurisdiction. - Leave EU single market
- Aim for an ‘ambitious, free trade agreement’
Note: this would be an extremely poor replacement for full single market access and would likely exclude key sectors of the UK economy such as financial services. - Will not unilaterally guarantee rights of EU citizens in the UK
- End freedom of movement
- Bring forward a ‘Great Repeal Bill’
Graphic courtesy of InFacts
How should pro-Europeans vote?
The best outcome for those who want the UK to stay would be for the next UK Parliament to contain a large number of pro-European MPs. The only way to achieve this is to vote for the pro-European candidate with the best chance of winning in each constituency.
Find out which pro-European candidate has the best chance of winning in your constituency
While the LibDems and Greens have the most anti-brexit stance, polls just a few days out from election day show there is no chance of them achieving anything close to a majority. The voting calculator shows which constituencies they could win.
Labour’s party leadership wants to pursue a so-called ‘hard’ #brexit outside of the single market. Yet compared to the Conservatives’ extreme approach, Labour is still preferable. With the voting calculator, you can see which seats Labour can win that the Greens or LibDems can’t.
Then there are those candidates who are just strongly pro-European and who may work against their party line if there are enough pro-Europeans elected to Westminster to back them up.
Click here to use the tactical voting calculator and find out which pro-European candidate has the best chance of winning in your constituency (courtesy of InFacts).
Other parties on #brexit
The Scottish Nationalist Party wants to:
- Have another independence referendum at the end of the #brexit process.
- Keep Scotland in the EU single market – even if the rest of the UK leaves it, but still keep an open border with England.
Note: Conservative government says this will be impossible, but wants the same solution for Ireland and Northern Ireland. Most experts say this arrangement would not work for either Ireland or Scotland. - Guarantee EU nationals’ right to remain in the UK
- Oppose any attempts by the UK Government to ‘sell out’ the fishing industry during talks
- Devolve all powers repatriated from Brussels relating to devolved areas such as fisheries and agriculture
- Oppose any move to use security cooperation as a bargaining chip during #brexit.
Plaid Cymru will seek:
- To maintain free trade links with the rest of Europe after departure from the EU
- A guarantee Westminister will match the £680m a year Wales currently receives from the EU
- A guarantee for the rights of EU citizens living and working in Wales
- A proper post #brexit deal for Welsh agriculture and industry.
Sinn Féin, the Social Democratic Labour Party (SDLP) and Alliance are the three most pro-EU parties in Northern Ireland. The leaders of Sinn Féin and the SDLP say they are open to talking with other pro-remain parties about a way forward to protect Northern Ireland from a hard #brexit.
Click here for more information on each one’s stance on #brexit
Sources
InFacts analysis on where main parties stand on #brexit LibDem manifesto, Nick Clegg speech on LibDem #brexit position Green party manifesto, speeches by Caroline Lucas and Molly Scott Cato on the Green party’s #brexit pledge Labour manifesto & Keir Starmer’s speech on Labour’s approach to #brexit Conservative manifesto, Brexit white paper SNP manifesto Plaid Cymru manifesto
