Wyre Forest Labour Party is deeply concerned about the impact of the Brexit crisis on the local economy and local people.

The Tories have NO plan to protect jobs and the Wyre Forest economy.

Labour does have a plan. It’s the one we’ve been arguing for since before the 2017 election.

Wyre Forest Labour’s Stephen Brown said “The Tories so called Brexit deal is simply a wish list, it’s got no guarantees to protect UK jobs, or protect your worker rights, the environment or consumer standards, and it has a controversial Border backstop for Northern Ireland which most of the Tories and its dark age partners, the DUP, hate. It’s the culmination of over 2 years of Mrs May’s incompetence and intransigence arising from her politically inept red lines as she tried to hold her Party together – the very thing which prompted Cameron to call the referendum in the first place. May’s disastrous deal has united Leavers and Remainers against it, and it’s why it had an unprecedented crushing defeat in Parliament. No one likes it. Yet still, Mrs May behaves like nothing has changed. She refused to talk or listen to anyone for over 2 years, and now tries to blame Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn for this mess because this week he refused to talk to her unless she took a no deal Brexit off the table. It’s desperate stuff from the Tories when Labour is the Party that’s been arguing for a good deal that protects jobs and the economy all that time.”

Wyre Forest needs a good Brexit deal. This Tory deal is not a good Brexit deal. Whilst everyone thinks of carpets when we talk of manufacturing and Kidderminster, the reality is different. The Government’s own workforce data shows that Wyre Forest has over 19,000 jobs in EU export sectors, the largest of these is automotive with over 7000 jobs. We have a much larger local manufacturing sector than the rest of the UK. Wyre Forest made products are sold all over the EU. Without a deal on the single market and a customs union, this could all be at risk. Labour is demanding a deal on these 2 things because it is in our Manifesto, and it’s what Keir Starmer, Labour Shadow Brexit Minister, has been arguing for, to protect jobs and our economy.

Many Tories are trying to engineer a no deal Brexit. By carrying on as she is, Mrs May risks walking into that trap. In the event of a Tory No-Deal Brexit, the risks for workers and their families in Wyre Forest will increase massively. This is not project fear, it could happen. There is no such thing as a no Brexit deal, the so called ‘WTO deal’ as the right wing Brexiteers claim. We’ll merely have terms for international trade through WTO rules that we have no say on with tariffs that could destroy jobs. Other WTO countries are already blocking any proposals we want to put. WTO countries are doing deals and forming their own trading blocs with other trading blocs like the EU because WTO rules stifle their economic growth. This is 2019 not 1945 and this is not “taking back control”. They are lying to you, again, despite telling you 3 years ago there are no downsides to Brexit and a deal with the EU will be the “easiest” in history.

About Mark Garnier:
Labour’s Stephen Brown continues “There’s something you should know about local Tory MP Mark Garnier’s views on the EU. When he was first elected he claimed to be a mild Euro-sceptic, he also said he thought the Euro currency would fail, it hasn’t of course. As a Minister, Mr Garnier admitted that he didn’t realise how important the EU is to the economy. Now he wants us to “embrace Brexit”. He doesn’t have a clue, he is such a flip flopper, ignorant of reality, because he will do and say anything to get your vote in a eurosceptic seat like Wyre Forest. As an exBanker cocooned by privilege, happy to go on tax payer funded global junkets, and more easily persuaded by dubious overseas regimes to argue their corner than the actual constituency he is supposed to represent; he has no idea how ordinary families have been affected by the Tory policies he’s already voted for. He has less of an idea about how either this Tory Brexit deal, or a no-deal Tory Brexit could damage our local economy. The Tory job figures and economic success are a mirage to many in Wyre Forest and not just those who rely on the Foodbank. Brexit is an emotional issue, Labour understands that, but for all our sakes, we must protect jobs and the economy in Wyre Forest too if we are to succeed after Brexit.

The Tories will NOT look after you post-Brexit. For them, Brexit is also a way to drive down your worker rights, your pay, our environmental and consumer standards, and become a tax haven for tax dodgers, all in order for their rich friends to make bigger profits. After all, they’ve got form on this dating back decades. It will make any long term trading deals with either the EU, or other progressive trading blocs, near impossible to reach.

What Will Labour do?

First of all, we need a Labour Government, a Labour Wyre Forest MP, that’s why we are calling for a General Election.

A Labour Government will protect the jobs of Wyre Forest workers by seeking an enhanced customs and tariffs agreement with the EU, which will allow for normal trade to continue and minimise the risk to Wyre Forest jobs.

We will also move to protect the employment rights of Wyre Forest workers after Brexit.

We will also move to protect environmental and consumer standards after Brexit.

Only Labour will protect Wyre Forest workers, pensioners and their families over Brexit.

Only Labour will work for the many not the few.