![\"Keir](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/berlin-germany-new-british-prime-minister-keir-starmer-stands-in-front-of-a-flag-of-the-6869465.jpg\" "\\"Keir")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Keir Starmer’s words will do little to placate hard Brexiteers (Image: Getty)<\/p>\n
\u2018Brexit betrayal\u2019 has become the latest accusation slapped against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. Ten years on from the landmark referendum on leaving the EU, the Labour leader continues to work on moving the UK closer to the European Union, rubbing hard Brexit backers up the wrong way.<\/p>\n
But Keir\u2019s plan for the UK\u2019s closer ties to the EU were clear all along – he already admitted to it in his own words.<\/p>\n
I recently found a copy of Beyond Brexit<\/a>: The Left\u2019s Agenda for the UK and the EU, published by the Fabian Society. I don\u2019t think it was ever troubling Richard and Judy\u2019s best sellers, as I was able to grab it for just \u00a31 in a British Heart Foundation.<\/p>\n The Foreword is written by a certain Keir Starmer<\/a> QC. Published in 2018, the chapter reveals Starmer\u2019s intentions in a post-referendum Britain years before he became Prime Minister.<\/p>\n Here, he goes into detail about what he thinks caused the referendum in the first place, pointing the finger at low pay, immigration and a troubled NHS.<\/p>\n Read more:<\/strong> You can\u2019t vote if you have code letters next to your name in election rules <\/a><\/p>\n Read more:<\/strong> DWP targets state pensioners and three benefits in bank checks crackdown <\/a><\/p>\n Beyond Brexit’s foreword was written by Keir Starmer (Image: Alex Evans)<\/p>\n He writes: \u201cWhen I campaigned for Remain in 2016, few people wanted to talk about the technicalities of the customs union or the single market. People wanted to talk about the problems with their local hospital, the difficulties they had buying a home, how they hadn\u2019t had a pay rise for years, or how they were increasingly frustrated with an immigration system they felt simply didn\u2019t work for their community.\u201d<\/p>\n Doubters and anti-EU diehards will be given little comfort by his assessment of the reasons he gives, appearing to defend the EU. He adds: \u201cThey wanted change\u2026 it may well be that many of these problems have little, if anything, to do with our relationship with the EU. But they were exposed by the referendum, and they need to be addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n The answer, Starmer writes is, \u2018radical social\u2019 change and a \u2018close future partnership with the EU\u2019. He continues: \u201cOver the last two years, Labour has made the case for a close future partnership with the EU and a Brexit deal that is rooted in our core values and principles.\u201d<\/p>\n Such a focus on moving closer to the EU has been evident in this government\u2019s actions. Just this week, Labour spent \u00a3570million for a single year of a new deal to rejoin the European Union<\/a>‘s Erasmus+ student exchange scheme in 2027. And later this year, Starmer is planning new laws to enable MPs to \u2018fast track\u2019 future UK standards in line with EU standards, which many will feel is a single market by any other name.<\/p>\n![\"Beyond](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1000058151-6869469.jpg\" "\\"Beyond")
<\/p>\n