London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Oct 06, 2025

Labour party pledges ethical core to Britain’s foreign policy

Labour party pledges ethical core to Britain’s foreign policy

Shadow international trade secretary Emily Thornberry will outline plans in a report published at the TUC annual congress
The Labour party on Sunday pledged to end what it calls the Conservative government’s “corporate-centred approach” to trade and rebuild policy around protecting workers’ rights and interests both in the UK and abroad.

In an echo of the late former foreign secretary Robin Cook’s “ethical foreign policy” plan, Emily Thornberry, the shadow international trade secretary, outlines the new plans in a report published at a special session of the TUC’s annual congress.

The report also deliberately echoes the “worker-centred trade policy” set out by the Biden administration in the US. Labour claims that such an approach will enable it to make progress towards a free trade agreement with the White House, which the government has so far failed to achieve.

Among the specific pledges drawn up in consultation with unions are guarantees that parliament will have a vote on the negotiating objectives for all new trade negotiations under a Labour government, as well as on any final deals.

On the international stage, the report includes plans for a new law building on the genocide amendment which was defeated by the government earlier this year – which would block trade deals with countries such as China, which many MPs say have committed serious abuses of worker and human rights.

The plans will be seen as a significant step in Labour’s efforts to building a post-Brexit approach both to international relations and trade based on values and rights instead of solely national commercial interest.

In an introduction to the report, Thornberry writes: “I truly believe that trade can be a global force for good, driving progress on climate change and international development, demanding respect for human rights and gender equality, and raising standards and prosperity throughout the world.

“But we must start with a trade policy that will create decent, well-paid jobs here at home, raise standards around the world, and ensure every trade deal the UK signs is used to protect, promote and enforce the rights of workers, wherever they may live.

“The government may be wasting the opportunity they have been given to re-shape our trade policy as a force for good and an example to the world, but this document shows that Labour is ready to fill that void and show what is possible instead.”

In the conclusion to the report, Labour claims that the current government’s failure to take the issue of workers’ rights seriously has damaged its prospects of securing a trade deal with the Biden administration.

It states: “Boris Johnson’s government appears not to realise that their deliberate dismissal of workers’ interests and rights in relation to trade puts them firmly at odds with the only country that can realistically help them reach their manifesto commitment to cover 80% of the UK’s trade with free trade agreements by the end of 2022.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
×