But it has not been enough to convince some. Labour MP Stephen Kinnock has long been calling for Britain to move into the European Economic Area, which is conjoined with the single market but free from the direct jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, and is often lobbying Starmer and his deputy Matthew Pennycock on the issue.



Kinnock said: "It’s great that we say we want a jobs-first Brexit – but how? And until we’ve set out the how, so people say 'yep, I get that, I see how it works', then I think it will be difficult to get right on to the front foot in terms of our role both as opposition and as a future government.

"I think that’s the challenge we have – we’re doing a fantastic job of holding the government’s feet to the fire, pointing out where they’re failing so badly to represent our national interest in the best possible way in these negotiations, but we’re not, so far, coming forward with a long-term vision with what we think our future relationship with the European Union should be."

Labour’s victory this week in finally forcing the government to start handing over supposedly secret reports into the potential impact of Brexit on the economy was a welcome boost for frustrated backbenchers. Whether or not the reports turn out to contain much information – and it is widely thought they won’t – it's hard to deny Labour is succeeding in holding Brexit secretary David Davis to account.

The party also used an urgent question on Wednesday to demand information from the government over the Brexit divorce settlement, which is expected to cost the UK more than £50 billion. In a move that caught the government off guard, Labour tabled an amendment to the EU withdrawal bill requiring the cost to be assessed by two financial watchdogs, and for MPs to be given a vote on it.

But Kinnock urged his party to go further: "Opposition is always about two things – holding the government’s feet to the fire and calling them out, but also being a government in waiting. And that means setting out your own vision, your own plan.

"We had a great manifesto on June 8 setting out a plan – we now need to step up to the plate and do the same on Brexit and that vision for a future relationship."

The lack of trust from pro-Remain backbenchers towards the Labour leadership over Brexit has roots in the EU referendum. “If Jeremy had fought just 20% harder, we would have had a different result,” one pro-Remain MP said. “The Tories were counting on Labour to do their part and he failed to step up."

Corbyn is now being pulled in two directions – between his Eurosceptic comrades of old and the swaths of young followers who backed him in the snap election. He also faces pressure from his trade union allies, who are desperate to protect jobs in the manufacturing, finance, and service industries, to pledge to stay in the single market long-term.

Richard Angell, director of centrist campaign group Progress, said: "What seems interesting to me is that Labour backbenchers – many of whom got a dividend at the election because young people turned out – have internalised that those young people as much as anything wanted them to stop a hard Brexit, and are trying to do what they can to honour those people who turned out for the first time.

"But the front bench have taken all the wrong conclusions from those young people turning up; they're thinking it was somehow about a transactional deal on tuition fees rather than a generational demand for their jobs and opportunities back. And the right thing to bring people together is to find a way to leave the EU and stay in the single market and customs union."

Other Labour voices, however, caution against assuming that all young people who voted for Corbyn are pro-Brussels. “This was a kick against the system,” one party staffer said of the snap election. “These voters hate elites in all forms: whether it's the Tory prime minister, whether it's the EU. Corbyn is the antidote to that.”

Labour will step up its attacks on the Tories' handling of Brexit ahead of the crunch European Council on 14 December, which will determine whether enough progress has been made in negotiations to allow Brexit talks to move on to trade and transition.

Starmer has dramatically given the PM "two weeks to save herself, save Brexit and save the economy". But MPs say criticism of Tory policy simply isn't enough.

And they warn that as time inexorably marches on towards the March 2019 exit date, splits within the party will only become deeper and starker unless Labour sets out a path on Brexit that is markedly different to that of the government.