LONDON (AP) 鈥 British opposition leader Keir Starmer says he will seek a closer relationship with the European Union, but won鈥檛 reverse Brexit, if his Labour Party wins a national election that鈥檚 due by the end of next year.
Opinion polls put the left-of-center party as much as 20 points , who have been in power since 2010.
Starmer told the Financial Times in an interview that the U.K.-EU trade and cooperation agreement negotiated by the Conservatives is 鈥渇ar too thin.鈥
鈥淲e will attempt to get a much better deal for the U.K.,鈥 he said, adding that the two sides 鈥渃an have a closer trading relationship as well.鈥
Britain鈥檚 departure from the EU in 2020 remains a divisive political issue. Starmer campaigned to remain in the bloc during the 2016 referendum campaign that was won narrowly by the 鈥渓eave鈥 side.
Since he has confirmed that the party will not seek to rejoin the 27-nation EU or try to re-enter the bloc鈥檚 single market and customs union, both of which would commit the U.K. to stick closely to EU rules. But he says he will seek to strengthen ties that became strained during testy divorce negotiations.
To an extent, Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has restored a U.K.-EU relationship that hit rock-bottom under his euroskeptic predecessors Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. He has struck a deal to resolve trade rules, and signed Britain up to the EU鈥檚 science cooperation program. But Sunak is a committed Brexiteer who is wary of getting too close to the bloc.
The Brexit divorce agreement is up for review every five years, starting in 2025. Sunak鈥檚 spokesman, Max Blain, said Monday that the Conservative government did not plan to renegotiate the deal 鈥渋n any way, shape or form.鈥
As Labour鈥檚 consistent poll lead raises the party鈥檚 hopes of a return to power, Starmer is making international visits aimed at boosting his profile and connections ahead of a general election in 2024.
He is due in Paris on Tuesday to meet French President Emmanuel Macron. Last week he travelled to The Hague to discuss the fight against people-smuggling gangs with EU police agency Europol and met Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a center-left political gathering in Montreal.
