"Everyone accepts that we'll be leaving the EU on Friday," the Labour leader's spokesman told journalists.

Jeremy Corbyn’s spokesman has told journalists that ‘there will be no tears’ from the Labour leader as Britain leaves the EU this Friday.

“The decision [to leave] needs to be upheld,” Corbyn’s spokesman told lobby journalists in response to a question from Left Foot Forward.

The Labour leader’s official spokesman added: “Everyone accepts that we’ll be leaving the EU on Friday…We will be fighting for the best possible future for Britain post-Brexit and using the possibilities that arise out of leaving the EU in the most progressive way”. He added that Friday’s departure will be ‘just the beginning’ of a process.

The spokesman said Labour – whoever wins the current leadership election – would be fighting for the “most progressive post-Brexit future possible to achieve, given the fact there’s a Tory majority in Parliament.”

Asked how Mr Corbyn feels about the UK’s departure on Friday, the spokesman told journalists: “There’ll be no tears….this is a decision that people took in 2016. The question is what the quality of that Brexit is going to be.”

Corbyn was strongly criticised by Remainers in the party for Labour’s changing position on leaving the European Union, including backing immediately triggering Article 50 after the 2016 vote. However, most Labour members rallied behind Labour’s eventual position of backing a fresh referendum on a Labour-negotiated deal vs Remain.

Corbyn has long been a critic of the European Union, but campaigned to Remain in the EU referendum. The current Labour leadership election has largely avoided the question of EU membership, though former candidate Jess Phillips sparked a debate when she suggested Britain could rejoin at some point in the future

Josiah Mortimer is Editor of Left Foot Forward.

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