LABOUR are split over backing an extension to the Brexit transition period with Richard Leonard wanting talks to continue to avoid crashing out without a deal next week – while Sir Keir Starmer does not.
The Scottish Labour leader supports Nicola Sturgeon's call for discussions to progress into next year in a bid to find a new trade arrangement to prevent further disruption in the midst of the pandemic.
But while UK Labour are opposed to No Deal, the party leader has come out against an extension.
Starmer said this week: “I don’t want an extension, I want a deal.”
He added: “And just delaying it further isn’t going to help with the great uncertainty there already is for businesses. So, I say to the Prime Minister, get on and deliver the deal that you promised.
“Get on and deliver it this week, today, tomorrow, and then we can recall parliament and deal with it.”
Talks between the UK and the EU remain stalled with major differences over fishing rights and rules on maintaining fair competition remaining.
Michel Barnier is to due to update ambassadors from the 27 European Union nations on the state of the negotiations with the UK as time runs out for a deal.
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon snubbed by Johnson as he pushes ahead with No-Deal Brexit plans
The EU's chief negotiator will also set out the state of play to MEPs as efforts continue to reach an agreement with the UK before the current trading arrangements expire on December 31.
Britain leaves the single market and customs union on December 31 and will face tariffs and quotas on trade with the EU unless a deal is reached.
MSPs will today debate a Bill related to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU with the Record today reporting that Scottish Labour will not adopt the Starmer position.
A spokesperson for Leonard told the paper: "Scottish Labour will be calling for an extension to the Brexit process in today's debate, in light of the escalation of the Covid crisis."
The Scottish Labour leader’s stance echoes the view expressed by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who tweeted: “I’m urging the Government to officially seek an extension to the Brexit transition period.
“Securing our key supply chains and fighting the coronavirus pandemic requires the full and undivided efforts of ministers more than ever before.”
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted yesterday: “It’s now imperative that PM seeks an agreement to extend the Brexit transition period. The new Covid strain – & the various implications of it – means we face a profoundly serious situation, & it demands our 100% attention. It would be unconscionable to compound it with Brexit.”
Her call was later rejected by the Prime Minister insist the UK will "prosper mightily" without a deal, despite warning that it could add further damage to an economy already ravaged by coronavirus.
SNP Depute Leader Keith Brown said: "For once, Richard Leonard is correct that a lengthy extension is a no-brainer given the deepening crisis of the pandemic, but he is just the branch office manager and his views carry no weight with his London boss Starmer, who is doing what's right for himself rather than the country.
“Labour, along with the Lib Dems, have now joined the Tories in becoming effectively pro-Brexit parties, helping drag Scotland out of Europe against our will."
The Office for Budget Responsibility has forecast that a no-deal outcome could result in a 2% hit to gross domestic product - a measure of the size of the economy - in 2021.
That would equate to around £45 billion being wiped off the value of the UK economy.
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