Jeremy Corbyn And Theresa May Discuss ‘Soft Brexit’ EU Customs Union Plan

May has repeatedly claimed that a customs union would undermine the UK’s ability to strike independent trade deals with non-EU countries, although some ministers believe the idea is worth exploring.

But Labour has pushed the idea, as well as a ‘strong single market’, as its own alternative to May’s Brexit plans, claiming it would retain frictionless trade with Europe that many businesses want.

Corbyn and May agreed to meet again in coming days, although there was no timetable for exactly when the next encounter would take place.

After the meeting, Corbyn said: “I asked for the Prime Minister’s assurance that we were not back into the territory of threatening no-deal as a way of getting support for her failed deal, which has obviously got very limited support in parliament.”

The Labour leader also revealed that he was willing to look again at a fresh Commons amendment to bind May’s hands to delay Brexit if the UK looked like it was set to crash out of the EU without an agreement.

He said he was “extremely disappointed” with the 14 Labour MPs who voted against Yvette Cooper’s move this week to force the PM into ruling out a no-deal exit.

“I’m very disappointed of those that chose to vote with the Conservatives last night on those issues,” he said.

Corbyn added that he will be having ‘discussions’ with the five frontbenchers who abstained on the proposal.

MPs voted by a narrow majority of eight votes for a separate, non-binding amendment by Tory Caroline Spelman and Labour’s Jack Dromey, that ruled out a no-deal exit from the EU.

Many Labour MPs and members fear a hard Brexit after the PM caved to pressure from her Tory Eurosceptics on Tuesday to reopen her deal with Brussels.

EU leaders made clear on Wednesday that they would not renegotiate the ‘withdrawal agreement’ that had been hammered out between UK and the 27-nation bloc over the past two years.