Much of the media has spent the last week reliving the 2016 referendum, grieving or celebrating accordingly. Those of us concerned with social justice cannot afford to look backwards, not when decades of progress – across protections at work, for the environment, and for equal treatment of all people – are at stake. This government is leaving the EU on the hardest terms, and our hard-won rights may not survive a deal with Donald Trump’s US.
I hate where we have ended up: a reckless government willing to risk jobs, our security and trash the cooperation of the past 50 years; a future that looks precarious for many, particularly for working people across the country whose jobs depend on EU trade. But we still have a choice. The battles of the past four years must end. Labour must get on the front foot and shape an alternative vision for Britain that sets out a better future.
We have to go out and win the argument that our future is European. Close cooperation is possible outside the EU – and it is necessary. For all the talk of trade deals with other countries, our businesses trade with the EU and that’s not going to stop. We have to make and win this argument in the country – especially in those areas where the leave vote was highest and where the local economy depends on trade with the EU. If there is a lesson to be learned from the devastating referendum defeat, it is that arguments behind the dispatch box will not cut it. We need to go out, arm our activists with the knowledge they need, and win this argument in workplaces, pubs and town halls across the UK.
We need to take on the challenges the Tory government is creating – and answer them. How will we remain competitive in a world where we trade with countries whose businesses can cut corners on how they treat their workers and the damage they do to the planet, when we shouldn’t be allowing UK businesses to do the same? The answer is to invest in the biggest asset we have – our people. The great protection for our car industry in the north-east against a hard Brexit is the skills that exist in that region, which are second to none, and not found in such great numbers anywhere else. The answer is education, education, education – in every part of the UK. Investing in our people is now central to the UK’s survival. This is about lifelong learning as well as a huge investment in our young people.
And we should bring this attitude and innovation to trade. The bilateral trade deals that the Tories fantasise about are clunky, built for a different era and disadvantage the UK. But our services exports are almost twice the value of goods exports. We need to look at how we can capture the fast growth of trade in services, including through digitisation. This is where our strength already lies. Not in a race to the bottom to provide ever cheaper goods.
We have the right base to build on in every part of this country: the reward for a history of ingenuity, entrepreneurship and facing down adversity. Britain is home to world-class education, and a rich and vibrant culture that attracts people from all over the world. From Grimsby and Aberdeen where wind energy is the basis of a thriving economy, to Barrow and Fife where shipbuilding is world-class, we should be making more of our assets and take advantage of the areas where our skills lie. National government has a role in backing those industries to succeed, and backing universities to stay world-class. But to realise this strength we need a political system that can see that such assets and potential must be protected, not just left to the whim of the market alone.
For too long our nations and regions have been treated as a problem to be solved. Decisions have been made by a small group of men in London and the south-east. We have piled investment into places that are already pulling ahead to improve productivity and it has left us lagging. One solution is greater devolution. But simple federalism will not do. The change must be much more profound – real power, in people’s hands.
It is only on that basis that we can pull together to build a better future. But this means sticking to our values. We should not be doing trade deals with countries that do not sign the Paris climate agreement. We should call out those who do not make a contribution. To stop exploitation and tax evasion. To require companies to pay the living wage. To level the playing field in ways big and small – whether we are talking about large companies able to game the system on tax or business rates.
I was born in the decade the UK joined the European Economic Community. For all its imperfections, the European ideal is one that has lifted working people up together and provided Britain with more than half a century of peace. The past few years have taught us that progress is not inevitable. Whatever you value, whatever you want, you have to go out and fight for it. Now is that moment.
• Lisa Nandy is Labour MP for Wigan
