I broadly agree with Owen Jones’s piece in The Guardian, a centrist split could be a gift to hard-right strategists.
Both Labour and Conservative are mistakenly committed to honouring the result of the referendum. We keep being told we’re defiantly, absolutely, positively, leaving the European Union. The only difference is the way we exit.
The Labour leadership seems broadly in favour a soft exit. Maintain the benefits of the European Union, mainly frictionless trade and workers rights, without being a member.
Government Conservatives, under the Chequers plan want the same thing, maybe? It’s definitely softer than hard-right Conservatives. They want to drive us off a cliff-edge.
Within that context, the appeal of centrists would be their pro-remain stance. Presumably it would attract MP’s from both parties, and damage both extremes equally. Their remain stance would appeal to the growing number of voters, slowly beginning to realise, leaving the European Union is going to have some very damaging consequences.
For me, one of the most dangerous parts of the centrist stance is their enthusiasm for neoliberalism. It wants to return us to the pre-election, pre-crash, status quo, and there lies its weakness. True, crashing out of the European Union would be a mistake. The cost of living will climb, and climb, and climb, with no deal. So the centrist can argue, with conviction, remaining part of the European Union is the lesser of two evils.
The hard-right Conservative version of exit, promises crisis capitalism that would make all but the wealthiest poorer. Which makes the Labour leadership’s stance either incredibly astute or incredibly reckless.
Centrist are hoping threats of a split will drag the Labour leadership towards them. It won’t, because what I’ve realised, exiting the European Union isn’t just about leaving, it’s also about exiting neoliberalism.
For Labour exiting offers a chance to draw a line under the neoliberal project. I could be wrong, I probably am, but the psychological break with the European Union is a chance to move us towards a country run for the many not the few.
That’s the astute part. The reckless part is letting the hard-right crash us out. They will then ramp up the hostile nationalism, and allow the profiteers to thrive.