Politically speaking with Yvette Cooper MP: ‘Brexit chaos is affecting our communities’

Everyone I talk to is tearing their hair out about it - whether people voted leave or remain, everyone feels let down.

We desperately need a bit of common sense to sort things out.

While this chaos is going on, the Government is failing to sort the serious problems in our communities — from rising crime to the NHS. So right now everyone is losing out.

Many of us have been trying for two years to make the Brexit process work and to get the best possible deal for British manufacturing, national security and worker’s rights.

I voted for Article 50, called for a cross party commission to do the negotiations, and worked on the Home Affairs Select Committee to put forward Brexit options on security and immigration.

But Theresa May has refused to work with anyone and has just stuck to the same failing deal for months, running down the clock.

We’ve had three different Brexit Ministers because the Cabinet couldn’t agree, and the Prime Minister has repeatedly delayed important votes and refused to listen or change her plans.

That’s why we are in such a mess now.

The problem with the Prime Minister’s Deal is that it weakens us for future trade negotiations ahead — which is why it has been repeatedly rejected on all sides.

We need a plan that supports British manufacturing abroad rather than putting us at a disadvantage.

Everyone needs to compromise to get out of this paralysis.

I’ve long argued for the Brexit deal to include a customs union and a strong economic relationship so our local manufacturers like Haribo and Burberry don’t face customs delays and costs.

I’ve also called for guarantees on workers’ rights.

But in order to try and break the gridlock that means Parliament has to consider other options too.

None of the options are perfect and to be honest, Brexit has proved more complicated than anyone expected it to be.

But somehow we have to bring the country back together again, stop everyone just shouting at each other and get some common sense back in this process.

Round here people work together and compromise all the time.

Be it trade unions and employers, friends and neighbours, we know how to sort things out and get things done. That’s what the Government and Parliament need to do too.

As long as the Government keeps making such a mess of this, the problem is that no one is focusing on the other desperate problems we are facing — like rising crime and antisocial behaviour, kids growing up in poverty, NHS waiting lists or lack of social care.

While everyone is paralysed on Brexit our country is going backwards.

For the sake of our country, we need people to work together on a sensible plan now.