The Prime Minister also identified the rise of China as having the biggest impact on British people’s lives in the years ahead
The British public were sold “wild promises” over Brexit that were left unfulfilled by the Conservatives and are still hampering the country today, the Prime Minister has warned.
In a speech setting out his foreign policy, Sir Keir Starmer was also unapologetic in his courtship of China, describing the absence of engagement with the world’s second biggest economy as “a dereliction of duty”.
Speaking at the Prime Minister’s annual Guildhall speech in central London, Starmer condemned the implementation of Brexit by the Tories, as he insisted that the UK must make its relationship work with the European Union.
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“The Brexit vote was a fair, democratic expression, and I will always respect that.
“But how it was sold and delivered was simply wrong. Wild promises were made to the British people and not fulfilled. We are still dealing with the consequences today,” he said.
The Prime Minister also attacked the “corrosive, inward-looking attitude” peddled by those whom he claimed have proposed choosing between the UK’s allies, leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), or even leaving Nato, which he said would take the country backwards.
“It offers grievance rather than hope. A declinist vision of a lesser Britain – not a Great Britain,” he said.
“Moreover, it is a fatal misreading of the moment. Ducking the fundamental challenge posed by a chaotic world – a world which is more dangerous and unstable than at any point for a generation. Where international events reach directly into our lives, whether we like it or not.”
It comes as the Prime Minister came under fire for the amount of time he has spent on foreign visits, and for his decision to forge a closer relationship with Beijing despite ongoing accusations of spying.
He is also attempting to reset relations with the EU by negotiating a deal to make importing food and drink cheaper, as well as a so-called youth exchange. The EU is demanding cheaper university fees for its students in UK universities.
An attempt to join the EU’s £132bn rearmament fund failed with agreement, however, after the deadline passed on Sunday.
It also comes as the Prime Minister and Treasury have started to partly blame the Brexit deal, along with austerity, Liz Truss’s mini-Budget and Donald Trump’s tariffs, for the poor state of the economy. While economists back this claim, they point out that the impact of austerity, Brexit and Truss’s time in power have been known for many years – while even Trump’s arrival did not come out of the blue.
Downing Street said the Government’s approach to the rise of China will be “central” to the Prime Minister’s foreign policy approach, which he believes will have a greater impact on the lives of Brits than any other global issue.
“[China] is a nation of immense scale, ambition and ingenuity. A defining force in technology, trade and global governance. At the same time, it also poses national security threats to the UK,” Starmer said.
“The UK needs a China policy that recognises this reality. Instead, for years, we have blown hot and cold. We had the golden age, which then flipped to an Ice Age. We reject that binary choice.
“So our response will not be driven by fear, nor softened by illusion. It will be grounded in strength, clarity and sober realism.”
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And he branded the UK’s failure to engage with the world’s second-largest economy as “staggering” as he promised to take a more considered approach to the superpower.
“This is not a question of balancing economic and security considerations. We don’t trade off security in one area for a bit more economic access somewhere else,” he said.
“Protecting our security is non-negotiable – our first duty. But by taking tough steps to keep us secure, we enable ourselves to cooperate in other areas.”