Labour could adopt an anti-Brexit position in its next manifesto, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said.

Asked in an interview in the Guardian whether there is any way Britain could avoid leaving the EU, Mr Khan replied "Yes", adding: "I'm an optimist."

Expanding on his idea, he told the paper: "For it to have credibility with the British public, there would have to be a Labour manifesto offer, because the public would say, not unreasonably, 'Hold on a sec, we voted to leave and you're now sticking two fingers up at us'."

Mr Khan's position appears to be at odds with the Labour leadership.

In its recent manifesto, Labour said it "accepts the referendum result".


Jeremy Corbyn has indicated a Labour government would take Britain out of the EU single market because being in it is "dependent on membership of the EU".

Jeremy Corbyn travels to Brussels

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer, however, has said nothing is off the table.

Mr Khan added that if Labour were to adopt an anti-Brexit position, it would need to be clear.

"You'd have to spell out," he said, "in black and white, what we'd do if we won the general election.

"What could trump the referendum result is us having a manifesto offer saying we would not leave the EU, or we would have a second referendum."

Image: Labour's manifesto said it accepted the EU referendum result

In response to Mr Khan's comments, a Labour spokesperson said: "Labour respects the result of the referendum and is making the case for a jobs-first Brexit, through securing full tariff-free access to the European single market."

Whatever the final form that Brexit actually takes, Chancellor Philip Hammond has said "many things will look similar" afterwards.

Mr Hammond has indicated that a transitional arrangement could last for up to three years following the planned withdrawal date of March 2019.