Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has suggested the United Kingdom could benefit from re-entering a customs union with the European Union, sparking a swift clarification from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer that such a move is not government policy.
Lammy points to economic benefits of closer alignment
In comments made on Friday 5 December 2025, Mr Lammy told the News Agents podcast that leaving the EU had "badly damaged our economy" and created serious trade friction. While stressing that rejoining a customs union was not the current government position, he pointed to the example of Turkey as a non-EU nation that seemingly benefits from such an arrangement.
"You can see countries like Turkey with a customs union seemingly benefiting and seeing growth in their economy, and again, that's self-evident," the Deputy PM stated. He also revealed that he returned to the subject of the UK's relationship with the EU "every single day" during his tenure as Foreign Secretary.
Starmer and Number 10 move to dampen speculation
Prime Minister Keir Starmer was quick to respond to his deputy's intervention, firmly anchoring the government's position to its election manifesto. Sir Keir emphasised that Labour's plan is to deepen ties with Europe without returning to the customs union, single market, or freedom of movement.
"The position that we are taking has been clearly set out in the manifesto, and then we've been following it," the Prime Minister said. He highlighted the recent first-ever UK-EU summit and its ten strands for closer cooperation as evidence of a successful reset in relations, which he said was good for the economy, defence, and energy security.
A spokesperson for Number 10 echoed this, stating: "We are strengthening relations with the EU whilst sticking to our red lines." The spokesperson explicitly confirmed that Mr Lammy's comments did not reflect government policy.
Underlying tensions on post-Brexit strategy
The episode reveals ongoing internal discussions about the UK's future economic relationship with Europe. It was reported that the Prime Minister's own economic adviser, Minouche Shafik, has also advocated behind the scenes for joining a customs union.
Sir Keir, speaking earlier at the Lady Mayor's Banquet, acknowledged the Brexit vote as a "fair, democratic expression" but criticised the way it was "sold and delivered." His spokesman added that there is "no credible economic vision for Britain" that does not position it as an open trading economy, but stressed the need to be "grown up about trade-offs."
While the government remains publicly united on its stated path of closer cooperation without formal customs union membership, Mr Lammy's remarks offer the clearest indication yet of the alternative policy direction being debated in some quarters of the Labour administration.
