Starmer says closer ties with EU single market preferable to a customs union

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Closer ties with the EU single market are preferable to a customs union, Keir Starmer has said, in his clearest sign yet that the government is seeking to further deepen links with Brussels.The prime minister said the UK should consider “even closer alignment” with the single market.“If it’s in our national interest … then we should consider that, we should go that far,” he told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg.In a riposte to some cabinet colleagues who have suggested the UK should seek to form a customs union with the EU, Starmer said he did not think that was the answer.“We are better looking to the single market rather than the customs union for our further alignment,” he said.

The health secretary, Wes Streeting, and the justice secretary, David Lammy, have both suggested the UK could get economic benefits from a new customs deal – as has the TUC general secretary, Paul Nowak.Starmer’s comments, which suggest the UK could explore further sectors for dynamic alignment beyond the food and drink deal agreed in May, drew immediate angry reactions from Reform UK and the Conservatives.The prime minister said that much had changed in the last few years, including the signing of new trade deals under Labour.“I argued for a customs union for many years with the EU, but a lot of water has now gone under the bridge,” he said.“I do understand why people are saying: ‘Wouldn’t it be better to go to the customs union?’ I actually think that now we’ve done deals with the US which are in our national interest, now we’ve done deals with India which are in our national interest, we are better looking to the single market rather than the customs union for our further alignment.

”The government has made slow progress on the most recently announced deal with Brussels and has pulled out of plans to enter a multi-billion EU defence fund,Negotiations over the new food and drink (SPS) agreement announced in May, as well as a youth mobility programme, are continuing but with several significant points of dispute,Any further alignment with the EU is likely to come with a further Brussels demand for relaxation of migration restrictions,Starmer said there would be no return to full freedom of movement rights as part of any future negotiations, but defended the deal for a youth mobility scheme,“We are looking at a youth mobility scheme which will be for young people to travel, to work, to enjoy themselves in different European countries, to have that experience.

”The shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel, called the remarks a “Brexit betrayal” and said Starmer was “surrendering our freedom to cut regulation and strike our own trade deals”.The leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage, said Starmer’s comments were “a breach of good faith with Labour voters” and criticised the co-operation with the EU on energy markets that is being explored, saying it would tie the UK to “crazy EU net zero policies and carbon taxes”.The battle over closer ties with Europe is likely to be a key dividing line that Labour seeks to draw with Reform.A Labour source said: “Nigel Farage’s biggest weakness is his militant opposition to any relationship with Europe.Couple that with anything to do with clean energy and you can see how he has wound himself up today.

“But it comes from something much more sinister, too.He doesn’t want British businesses to find things easier.He doesn’t want bills to come down.If Britain struggles, that fuels his politics of division.”Starmer has given hints in recent months he would like to revisit strengthening ties with the EU.

In November, Nick Thomas-Symonds, the minister in charge of EU negotiations, was promoted to full cabinet rank.Minouche Shafik, the prime minister’s economic adviser, is among those close to Starmer who have suggested internally that returning to the customs union could be one of the most effective ways of generating growth.But Starmer himself has been more reticent, having signed numerous international trade deals while in office including with India and an economic agreement with the US, which he has been able to tout as some of his successes.Backbench pressure has been growing within the Labour party, with 13 of its MPs backing a Liberal Democrat proposal to join a customs union in a Commons vote last month.The intervention from Streeting in an Observer interview late last year that a customs union would bring “enormous economic benefits” was widely seen as a challenge to Starmer amid speculation over the prime minister’s future.

In his interview with the BBC, Starmer warned his internal rivals they would be opening the door to a government led by Nigel Farage if they recreated the “chaos” of the Tory leadership battles.“What I don’t think will help us is if a Labour government turns back to the chaos of the last Tory government.That would gift Nigel Farage,” he said.He said he believed Labour could still win the next election – and said he would be judged at that moment: “I was elected on a five-year mandate to change this country.I intend to deliver on that mandate.

I will be judged at the next general election on whether we have brought about the change that people voted for,”Starmer said the next election would be “unlike any election we’ve seen in this country for a very, very long time”,“Because my strong view is it’ll be a Labour government up against a very rightwing proposition in Reform,” he said,“And that Reform proposition will be a proposition of toxic divide of this country,The next election is going to be about a question of, what is it to be British? And I believe to be British is to be compassionate, reasonable, live and let live, and diverse.

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Rukmini Iyer’s quick and easy recipe for roast sweet potato, feta and butter bean traybake | Quick and easy

A brilliant, warming 30-minute traybake, all in one tin. I love the combination of roast sweet potatoes with crumbled feta and a bright, fresh pesto; adding butter beans to the mix brings another hit of protein, as well as getting more legumes into your diet – win-win! A jar or tin of chickpeas would work just as well, if that’s what you have in, and feel free to substitute the parsley for other soft herbs, should you wish.Prep 15 min Cook 30 min Serves 22 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed or peeled (up to you) and cut into 1½cm chunks570g jar butter beans (or 400g tin butter beans), drained and rinsed2 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp smoked paprika2 tsp flaky sea salt 200g block feta, crumbledFor the spring onion pesto 25g flat-leaf parsley, leaves and tender stems3 spring onions, trimmed and roughly chopped50g almonds, or pine nuts 50ml extra-virgin olive oilJuice of ½ lemonHeat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Tip the sweet potato chunks, butter beans, olive oil, smoked paprika and a teaspoon of sea salt into a roasting tin or tray large enough to hold everything in almost one layer, mix well, then roast for 30 minutes.Meanwhile, blitz the parsley, spring onions, nuts, olive oil, lemon juice and half a teaspoon of salt in a high-speed blender or chopper

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Overnight oats, spinach pie and cheesy corn muffins: Alexina Anatole’s recipes for make-ahead breakfasts

The saying goes that you should breakfast like a king, and I’ve long found that the key to making that happen during the busy work week is to batch-prepare breakfast at the weekend. As we start a new year, the focus is back on balance, and these dishes offer both nourishment and flavour, while also being ideal for making ahead. The overnight oats are a source of fibre, the muffins are high in protein and the pie is a source of both.Prep 5 minCook 10 minSoak OvernightServes 4120g rolled oats 1 tsp ground cinnamon 4 small pears, 2 grated, 2 to garnishSalt120ml freshly squeezed orange juice (from 3-4 small oranges)2 balls stem ginger, finely chopped, plus 1½ tbsp syrup from the jar 200g greek yoghurt, plus extra to serveSliced pistachios, to serve (optional)In a small bowl, mix the oats, cinnamon, grated pears and a pinch of salt. In a second bowl, stir the orange juice, chopped stem ginger and ginger syrup, then stir this and the yoghurt through the oat mix

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How to make the perfect breakfast tacos – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect …

Breakfast tacos should not be confused with tacos eaten for breakfast. Of course, they often are eaten for breakfast, but the stuffed flour tortillas eaten on both sides of the southern US border are quite different from the tacos mañaneros of central and southern Mexico, the rich, corn-based tacos de canasta (“tacos in a basket”) or the smoky beef barbacoa that Monterrey-born Lily Ramirez-Foran recalls being her dad’s favourite Sunday breakfast. Instead, Texas Monthly explains, breakfast tacos “marry the key elements of an American morning – scrambled eggs, bacon, potatoes – with the Mexican staples of salsa, cheese, refried beans … genius.”Although they’re originally a Mexican creation, according to José R Ralat, the magazine’s taco editor (what a job title!), these $3 treats are now so popular north of the border that they’re the subject of regular taco wars, mostly between those who claim Austin as their spiritual home (often blow-ins, according to their fiercest critics), and those who know that no single city can take the credit. The fillings may vary, from pork chops to chilaquiles and beans to cheese, but Ralat maintains that all should be salty, soft and, above all, comforting, and told the Washington Post a few years ago that “the greatest breakfast taco is the one made at home”

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Poon’s at Somerset House, London WC2: ‘The tofu dip alone is worth booking a table for’ – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants

The cooking is refreshingly light, delicate and, you might even say, wholesomeIf you find yourself ice-skating at Somerset House in central London over the next week or so (and hurry: you’ve got only until 11 January before it closes), then first please accept my commiserations. Second, please also note that the Chinese restaurant Poon’s, by Amy Poon, scion of the Poon’s restaurant dynasty, recently rooted itself in the New Wing.Ice-skating itself I have nothing against, but we can all agree that these slippery yuletide stampedes on temporary rinks are the polar opposite of festive, so surely it would be far better to be hiding indoors in the warmth with a round of prawn wontons, a bowl of nourishing “magic soup”, or some wind-dried meat claypot rice. Plus, when the weather outside is frightful, the decor in Poon’s is utterly delightful. So gorgeous, in fact, that within two minutes of entering this dusky, muted salmon-pink, twinkly peach, womb-like space, I found myself asking for the name and brand of the paint shade, because it felt instinctively one that, if applied to my own walls at home, would solve many existential problems

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Benjamina Ebuehi’s recipe for yoghurt panna cotta with banana and tahini crumble | The sweet spot

I’m of the opinion that we still need dessert in January. In a month that’s typically grey, dreary and ridiculously long, it’s the little things that spark joy. Granted, I’m not necessarily reaching for anything too rich or heavy, but when I’m craving a bit of sweetness, the likes of this yoghurt panna cotta really hit the spot. If you squint, it could easily be mistaken for a fun breakfast pot.The crumble will make more than you need for this, so save the leftovers in an airtight container for a handy crunchy snack

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How to turn the dregs of a bottle of beer into cheesy rolls – recipe | Waste not

If you don’t fancy the last warm finger or two of beer in your can, save it to bake into these fluffy, flavourful rollsI often don’t finish a large bottle or can of beer, leaving a bit in the bottom that barely seems worth saving. When I remember, I’ll pop it in the fridge and save it to add to a stew or batter, but today’s rolls are my new favourite way of using it up.You’ll need just 150ml beer to make these fluffy, super-flavourful buns. They’re a serious treat, and wonderful straight from the oven or dipped into a hearty stew. To build good gluten strength, especially when working with wholemeal flours, always add any extra flavourings such as cheese and herbs after the dough has had its initial proving time