PM tells Munich conference UK must work closer with the EU in dangerous times

Sir Keir Starmer has declared that Britain is no longer “the Britain of the Brexit years”, signalling a significant shift in tone as he pushes for closer defence cooperation with the European Union.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, the Prime Minister will argue that the UK must deepen ties with Europe at a time of heightened global instability. He is expected to warn that turning inward would amount to a “surrender” of control.

“We are not the Britain of the Brexit years anymore,” Sir Keir will say. “Because we know that, in dangerous times, we would not take control by turning inward – we would surrender it. And I won’t let that happen.

“There is no British security without Europe, and no European security without Britain. That is the lesson of history – and it is today’s reality too.”

His remarks come amid growing debate within Labour over Britain’s future relationship with Brussels. Chancellor Rachel Reeves recently said she was “up for” taking Britain closer to the EU, describing it as the “biggest prize” for the UK economy. In January, she had said the country could not “go back in time” in its relationship with the bloc.

The Telegraph understands that Labour has instructed officials to examine new areas of “dynamic alignment”, where the UK would match certain EU standards and regulations. Civil servants have reportedly spent the past six weeks identifying sectors that could be aligned with Brussels rules. Ministers have already agreed on dynamic alignment on food, animal and plant health regulations, and are planning to link electricity and carbon credit markets with the EU.

Sources indicated that the automotive and digital services sectors could follow, making it easier to export to the EU.

Sir Keir’s speech will focus heavily on defence. He is expected to call on Europe to reduce its dependence on the United States, particularly in light of the uncertainty surrounding the US commitment to NATO during the presidency of Donald Trump.

“I’m talking about a vision of European security and greater European autonomy,” he will say, “that does not herald US withdrawal but answers the call for more burden sharing in full, and remakes the ties that have served us so well.”

He will argue that Europe has failed to maximise its defence capabilities and will push for closer UK-EU defence cooperation to “multiply our strengths and build a shared industrial base across Europe which can turbocharge our defence production”.

Talks over Britain potentially joining the EU’s €130bn Security Action for Europe (Safe) rearmament fund reportedly stalled at the end of last year amid concerns about the cost of entry.

“Europe is a sleeping giant,” Sir Keir will say. “Our economies dwarf Russia’s, 10 times over. We have huge defence capabilities. Yet, too often, all of this has added up to less than the sum of its parts.”

His intervention comes during a turbulent period in Downing Street. Sir Keir’s position has been weakened by the Lord Mandelson scandal and internal tensions within Labour. Morgan McSweeney, his former chief of staff, recently departed amid broader changes in the Prime Minister’s team.

The Prime Minister is also set to criticise Reform UK and the Green Party, describing them as “the peddlers of easy answers on the extreme Left and the extreme Right”.

“It’s striking that the different ends of the spectrum share so much,” he will say. “Soft on Russia and weak on Nato – if not outright opposed – and determined to sacrifice the long-standing relationships that we want and need to build, on the altar of their ideology.”

He will warn that their approach risks “division and then capitulation”, adding: “The lamps would go out across Europe once again. But we will not let that happen.”

While some Labour figures, including David Lammy and Wes Streeting, have called for considering re-entry into the customs union, ministers remain wary of the political risks. One Whitehall source described rejoining as “political f—ing suicide”.

For now, Sir Keir appears determined to redraw Britain’s post-Brexit posture without formally reversing the decision to leave – positioning the UK as an indispensable European security partner in what he calls increasingly dangerous times.