Keir Starmer's EU plans are a disaster for Britain, warns Boris Johnson | Politics | News

Sir Keir Starmer's attempt to move closer to the EU will be a disaster, Boris Johnson has warned.

The former prime minister said Brexit had allowed Britain to chart its own course, highlighting the Covid vaccine rollout and the AUKUS defense deal.

Mr Johnson warned that Sir Keir was determined to roll back all these things.

He told Camilla Tominey on GB News: After gaining full national independence we were able to do things differently, like the vaccine rollout, like the AUKUS pact, like taking a different position to our European partners on the 'Ukraine.

What worries me now is that the Starmer government is really determined to try to roll back all these things.

It will be a disaster.

Britain, in a globalized, ultra-competitive, globalized economy, must be able to do things quickly.

We could do a lot more.

Much more can be done. It's about believing in Britain, isn't it? It's about believing in this country's ability to do things differently.

Brexit is one of them.

Asked if Sir Keir and Chancellor Rachel Reeves were trying to reverse Brexit, Mr Johnson said: “That’s the key point.

Of course they are. Now, if we had followed the rules, yes, at the end of 2020, 2021, we would not have been able to authorize AstraZeneca, Pfizer.

This is very, very important and as of March 2021 we had vaccinated 45% of the UK population under the program, compared to 10% of the UK population. »

The prime minister promised to put the years of Brexit behind us ahead of a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council chief Charles Michel and MEP Roberta Metsola.

Sir Keir said he wanted to establish a more pragmatic and mature relationship with the European Union.

But furious Eurosceptics warned it was the latest sign the Labor leader would betray the British people following the historic decision to leave the bloc in 2016.

A joint statement following the talks said the two had agreed to meet again this autumn, with a plan for regular EU-UK summits at leader level starting in early 2025.

“They agreed that a stable, positive and forward-looking relationship was in their mutual interest and constituted the basis for long-term cooperation,” the statement said.

“They agreed to advance this enhanced cooperation agenda over the coming months, starting by jointly defining areas in which enhanced cooperation would be mutually beneficial, such as the economy, energy, security and resilience, in their entirety. respect for their internal procedures and their institutional prerogatives.

Speaking in Brussels, Sir Keir said: “I firmly believe that the British public wants to return to pragmatic and sensible leadership when it comes to dealing with our closest neighbors, to ensuring that the Brexit works and to meet its interests, to find ways to boost Brexit. economic growth, strengthen our security and address common challenges such as irregular migration and climate change.

He added that “in dangerous times, we have a duty to work together to preserve stability and security”, referring to the crisis in the Middle East and the war in Ukraine.

Sir Keir said: “We are determined to put this relationship back on a stable and positive footing, which I think we all want to see.”

Ms von der Leyen said the various arrangements put in place since the Brexit vote, including the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), must be fully implemented.

She said: “We have a strong set of agreements in place. We should explore opportunities for greater cooperation, while focusing on the full and faithful implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement, the Windsor Framework and the CCA.

The Prime Minister is under pressure to accept calls from Brussels for a youth mobility deal, to allow young EU citizens greater freedom to come to the UK to study and work and vice versa versa, which he has so far resisted.

The Prime Minister's red lines for the reset rule out a return to the single market, customs union or free movement.

But pro-EU campaigners pushed him to give ground on a youth mobility program.