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The Tories like to give the impression that Brexit talks with Labour are going rather well.

But in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Mirror, John McDonnell paints a very different picture.

The shadow Chancellor says ministers fall out with one another in front of the Labour team. Which is a funny way to negotiate.

And with the Government visibly ­disintegrating, Mr McDonnell says it’s hard to have confidence in the talks producing an enduring result.

He puts his finger on the problem which faces the whole nation. The country is sailing in a rudderless ship of state whose crew might chuck the skipper overboard at any moment.

(Image: Ian Vogler/Daily Mirror)

We hope these talks succeed. We hope Brexit will be sorted out once and for all. But like the shadow Chancellor, we are sceptical.

And because Brexit occupies every Tory waking moment, there is a vacuum of ideas needed to solve the nation’s ills.

Not so with Labour. Mr McDonnell is keen to give Universal Basic Income a try. So is this newspaper. It may not be the answer to our complex and chaotic benefits system, but we’ll never find out unless we have the courage to give it a go.

Rejuvenating our high streets will be a Labour priority. And it can come none too soon. Wait much longer and there will be little left to resurrect.

Jeremy Corbyn yesterday promised under-18s a living wage of £10 an hour. That’s what we call real income reform.

The country is crying out for leadership. And if the Tories cannot provide it, Labour is ready and willing.