London, Thanasis Gavos

Britain’s main opposition Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer has said the UK needs an “improved” Brexit deal with the EU.

He was reacting, speaking to Sky News, to carmaker Stellantis’ warning that Brexit threatens the viability of electric vehicle manufacturing businesses in the UK.

Sir Kiir said that if elected prime minister in an election still a year and a half away, he would seek to renegotiate many elements of the trade deal with the EU.

He stressed, however, that a Labor government under him would not seek to rejoin the EU or the single market.

“I don’t think there are many people who will see the deal and believe that it works very well. We were promised a deal ready to go in the oven and we got something half-baked,” commented Mr Starmer.

Stellantis, the parent of companies including Peugeot, Fiat, Opel and Citroën, has submitted a memorandum to a parliamentary committee looking into the electric car industry saying it is struggling to meet the terms of the post-Brexit London-Brussels trade deal.

He particularly pointed to the high cost of transporting batteries from mainland Europe to the UK after Brexit.