Before becoming leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn opposed Britain's membership of the European Economic Community and then the European Union all of his political life. Footage has revealed that in 1995, he spoke out against the EU's bureaucracy. He was also filmed revealing his disdain for the way Brussels dealt with the 2015 Greek bailout crisis.
Mr. Corbyn is a Brexiteer
During the EU Referendum last year, he struggled to compose a passionate argument for Britain to remain in the EU. He also failed to reveal whether he voted for Brexit when he attended his local polling station.
Although his position on the issue has become muddled and confused since June 23rd 2016, if Remainers bothered to study his history of opposition to the EU, they will discover his actions speak louder than his words. Mr. Corbyn is a Brexiteer. He always has been and he always will be. Why do so many Euro-enthusiasts turn to him as their best hope of defeating the UK's withdrawal from the trading bloc? It is strangely ironic, if anything.
A study conducted by The Independent found that 30,000 voters turned to Labour as their best hope of defeating a 'hard' Brexit. Yet the Labour leader said himself that remaining a member of the EU's Single Market contradicts ending the free movement of workers, meaning you cannot have one without the other.
This proves he himself supports a full EU withdrawal.
But the shadow Brexit Secretary, Sir Keir Starmer, intends to table an amendment to enable the UK to remain part of the European Economic Area as part of a transitional deal before 2022. There is much talk of the Conservatives being divided over leaving the EU, yet Labour is just the same.
This adds more speculation as to why the majority of Remain voters who participated in that Independent survey voted for this party when their position is so confusing.
Labour was the lesser of two evils
Perhaps they feel that under the First-Past-the-Post voting system Britain uses to select its governments, they felt Labour was the lesser of two evils in regards to Brexit.
They knew the Tories were mostly united on implementing a full withdrawal from Brussels, but felt the centre-left party was still their best hope of thwarting a 'hard' EU exit under the UK's two-party system. Yet they also knew Mr. Corbyn's party's manifesto said this country will leave the trading bloc in its entirety. This means 80 per cent of people who voted this year chose a party that supported a 'hard' Brexit.
Even though the Liberal Democrats were the only party to oppose Britain leaving the EU, many Remainers must have felt voting for them was a 'wasted' vote. It is clear the party has also struggled to rebuild itself after the disastrous tuition fees u-turn in 2010. Despite this, if I was a passionate Europhile, I would have voted for the Liberal Democrats in June.
This general election was a total mystery. We also witnessed UKIP voters deserting their party for Labour, satisfied by the latter's Brexit policy as well. So just who does Mr. Corbyn appeal to then? Everybody? Perhaps this is why he performed better than expected in June.