Jeremy Corbyn accuses Jo Swinson of creating more Brexit division

(left to right) Emily Thornberry, Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn, Andrew Gwynne and Keir Starmer kick off the Labour Party's General Election campaign at the Battersea Arts Centre, London. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire. - Credit: PA

Jeremy Corbyn has claimed that the Liberal Democrats are seeking to ‘divide us further’ with an unequivocal Remain position of cancelling Brexit altogether.

He said that their proposals to revoke Article 50 would lead to “a parliamentary stitch-up” as he officially kicked off his winter general election campaign.

Jeremy Corbyn instead pledged to “get Brexit sorted” in six months as he accused Boris Johnson of being solely to blame for the EU departure delay.

He pledged to broker a new deal with Brussels and to put it to the people in a referendum “Friends, today is October 31,” he said to laughter from the crowd of supporters gearing up for the December 12 election.

“The day Boris Johnson promised we would leave the EU.

“He said he would rather be dead in a ditch than delay beyond today.

“But he has failed. And that failure is his alone.

“After three long years of Brexit division and failure from the Tories, we have to get this issue sorted.

“We need to take it out of the hands of the politicians and trust the people to have the final say.

“Labour will get Brexit sorted within six months.

“We’ll let the people decide whether to leave with a sensible deal or remain.

“That really isn’t complicated.”

Corbyn courted chants of “not for sale” when criticising “Johnson’s sell-out deal” and vowing to protect the health service from US President Donald Trump in a post-Brexit trade deal.

“Despite his denials, the NHS is up for grabs by US corporations in a one-sided Trump trade sell-out,” Mr Corbyn told supporters in the Battersea Arts Centre.

He declined to directly answer a question on how he would vote in a referendum on a Labour Brexit deal and whether he would resign if he lost a second general election, instead saying “it’s not a presidential election”.

Labour wants the campaign to focus on domestic policies including minimum wages rises, house building, ending rough sleeping, re-nationalising “rail, mail and water” and ending the climate crisis rather than Brexit.

“This election is our last chance to tackle the climate emergency with a green industrial revolution,” he said.