On December 9, 2025, the House of Commons found itself at the center of a political whirlwind as a Liberal Democrat bill calling for the United Kingdom to open talks on a new customs union with the European Union scraped through in a dramatic vote. The outcome, decided by the casting vote of Deputy Speaker Caroline Noakes after a 100-100 tie, has sent ripples through Westminster and reignited debate over the country’s post-Brexit future.
Thirteen Labour MPs broke ranks to support the bill, defying their party’s official stance and exposing fresh tensions within the Labour leadership. The government, led by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, has repeatedly stated that rejoining the customs union or the single market is not on its agenda. Yet, the symbolic victory for pro-EU campaigners has increased pressure on Starmer to reconsider Labour’s Brexit policy, especially as economic anxieties persist across the country.
The bill, tabled under the ten-minute rule by Liberal Democrat Europe spokesperson Dr. Al Pinkerton, calls for the government to begin negotiations on a bespoke customs union with the EU. While highly unlikely to become law without government backing, the vote was a rare parliamentary deadlock, the first of its kind in the Commons since 2019. According to BBC, the Speaker’s casting vote is traditionally used to allow for further debate, rather than to settle an issue outright, and Deputy Speaker Noakes confirmed she was following this precedent as she voted “aye.”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey was quick to hail the result as a “historic victory.” In his words, “Across the country, people are crying out for real change and a solution to the cost-of-living crisis. A customs union with the EU is the single biggest step the government could take to grow our economy, put money back into people’s pockets and generate billions for our public services.” Davey also urged the prime minister to “drop his self-imposed red lines and finally go for proper growth through an ambitious trade deal with the EU.”
Al Pinkerton, introducing the bill, did not mince words about Brexit’s legacy. “Brexit was an abject economic failure which choked business investment, shattered economic resilience, strangled trade, stifled the economy and left every one of us poorer,” he told Parliament, as reported by Sky News. He argued that a customs union would “cut red tape, unlock investment and restore certainty to British business.”
The Labour leadership, however, has remained steadfast—at least publicly. Starmer, whose party’s manifesto explicitly rules out rejoining the customs union or single market, responded to the rebellion by reiterating Labour’s position. “The position that we are taking has been clearly set out in the manifesto and then we’ve been following it,” Starmer said, according to The Guardian. His deputy, David Lammy, has also been vocal about Brexit’s economic damage but insisted, “That’s not currently our policy, that’s not currently where we are.”
Among the Labour MPs who voted in favor were Richard Burgon, Dawn Butler, and Dame Meg Hillier. The majority of Labour MPs abstained, while three—Jonathan Brash, Luke Myer, and Josh Newbury—voted against the bill. With Labour holding more than 400 seats in the Commons, the rebellion, while numerically small, is politically significant. It signals growing restlessness among backbenchers and a desire among some MPs for a more ambitious approach to Britain’s relationship with Europe.
Conservative MP Simon Hoare, who had opposed Brexit, nonetheless argued against the bill. He told MPs that joining a customs union would go against the referendum result, create uncertainty for businesses, and potentially unravel trading relationships with countries like Australia. Most critically, he said, “The EU does not want it. There is neither interest in it nor appetite for it. It is an enormous arrogance to think that they do.”
From the right of the political spectrum, both the Conservatives and Reform UK have been quick to criticize any suggestion of returning to closer EU ties. Eighty-nine Conservative MPs and four Reform UK members voted against the bill. The phrase “Brexit betrayal” has again surfaced in public discourse, with some commentators warning that moves toward a customs union would undermine the democratic mandate of the 2016 referendum.
The government’s official line remains that it is seeking to build a closer relationship with the EU through targeted agreements—on food standards, electricity trading, and youth visas—rather than wholesale reintegration. Yet, as HuffPost UK notes, the vote is a sign that the political mood is shifting, with even Labour ministers more openly criticizing the economic consequences of Brexit. Starmer himself recently described the “wild promises” made by Brexiteers, while David Lammy has called it “self-evident” that Brexit damaged the UK economy.
Still, Starmer has so far resisted calls from both his own MPs and his chief economic adviser to pivot toward rejoining the customs union. The prime minister’s position is complicated by the need to balance the demands of pro-European backbenchers with the broader electorate’s lingering divisions over Brexit. Labour’s manifesto, which was central to its recent election victory, promises to “strengthen the UK’s relationship with Brussels without rejoining the customs union, single market or freedom of movement.”
The customs union, which the UK left after Brexit, had previously allowed member states to charge the same taxes on goods imported from outside the bloc, significantly easing trade barriers. Proponents argue that rejoining would remove much of the red tape and friction currently hampering UK-EU trade. Opponents, however, warn it would limit Britain’s ability to strike independent trade deals and could be seen as a reversal of the Brexit mandate.
Meanwhile, the government faces parallel challenges. Prime Minister Starmer and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen have jointly called for a modernization of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to address illegal migration, as reported by The Independent. This move is seen as an attempt to shore up the UK’s international commitments while responding to domestic pressures on border control. Labour, unlike the Conservatives and Reform UK, remains committed to the ECHR, but is pushing for changes in how key articles are interpreted to facilitate the removal of those with no right to remain in the UK.
Amid these debates, Labour Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been grappling with a separate crisis—a leak inquiry into unauthorized disclosures about Budget plans. Reeves told MPs, “It was not briefing that was signed off by me, any of my ministers or officials. It was unacceptable. That is why there is a leak inquiry going on.” The incident has prompted a review of Treasury security processes and IT systems, with Reeves expressing her frustration at the volume of leaks and speculation that surrounded her Budget statement.
For now, the customs union bill moves forward, but its fate is uncertain without government support. What’s clear is that the debate over Britain’s place in Europe—and the legacy of Brexit—is far from settled. The Commons vote has exposed fault lines within Labour, emboldened pro-EU voices, and forced the government to confront the economic and political realities of life outside the EU. As the dust settles, all eyes will be on whether this symbolic victory will translate into concrete change—or simply mark another twist in the UK’s ongoing Brexit saga.
