Wes Streeting has said that building a deeper trading relationship with the European Union would be the most effective way to grow the UK economy, warning that the country is carrying an “uncomfortable” level of taxation.
The health secretary argued that Britain is asking too much of both taxpayers and businesses, and said stronger economic ties with Europe could help ease pressure on public finances. While he ruled out any return to freedom of movement, his remarks appeared to leave open the possibility of closer arrangements such as a customs union.
Streeting’s comments go further than the current government position, which has ruled out rejoining a customs union while pursuing a limited reset in relations with Brussels. Some ministers are believed to favour a more ambitious approach to repairing trade links with the EU in order to boost growth.
Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with the Observer, Streeting said the economic impact of Brexit had been severe and continued to weigh on the UK.
“We’ve taken a massive economic hit leaving the European Union. I’m really uncomfortable with the level of taxation in this country. We’re asking a lot of individual taxpayers, we’re asking a lot of businesses. We’ve got a level of indebtedness that we need to take very seriously,” he said.
“The best way for us to get more growth into our economy is a deeper trading relationship with the EU.”
He added that the benefits of EU membership had been underestimated at the time of Brexit.
“The reason why leaving the EU hit us so hard as a country is because of the enormous economic benefits that came with being in the single market and the customs union. This is a country and a government that wants a closer trading relationship with Europe.”
However, Streeting stressed that political red lines remained.
“The challenge is any economic partnership we have can’t lead to a return to freedom of movement,” he said.
Turning to the NHS, Streeting said the health service was coping with the ongoing resident doctors’ strikes, but warned that the recovery period afterwards could be more difficult as winter pressures intensify and flu cases rise.
“I think the NHS is coping. The period that worries me more is the post-strike period when we have to try and recover the service. That now falls at a time of year which is the NHS’s busiest,” he said.
The health secretary has taken a firm stance in the dispute, offering resident doctors more training places but no additional pay for the current financial year. The offer was rejected, drawing criticism from unions, including Unison, which described the approach as unacceptable.
Streeting defended his position, saying negotiations with the British Medical Association had been challenging.
“I don’t think that doctors are selfish and don’t care about nurses and other healthcare professionals, but the BMA’s position can be quite hardline and uncompromising,” he said.
Amid speculation about Labour leadership tensions, Streeting dismissed suggestions he was manoeuvring to replace Sir Keir Starmer, describing recent media briefings as a “bizarre drive-by”. He said he was deliberately avoiding fuelling what he called a political soap opera.
“I’m diplomatically ducking the question to avoid any more of the silly soap opera we’ve had in the last few months,” he said, adding that the prime minister had his full support.
Streeting also suggested he was open to reviewing tougher approaches to social media regulation for under-16s, citing concerns about online harm.
“We need to think much more radically about how we support young people to navigate this new online world,” he said, pointing to bullying, misogyny and radicalisation online, and said Australia’s recent moves in the area were worth watching closely.
