Brexit has relegated Britain to ‘middle power’ status, says ex-foreign secretary

Brexit has relegated Britain to just one of many “middle powers” in the world, David Miliband has said.

The former foreign secretary, who served under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, said the UK’s wealth, military assets and reputation have all declined relative to other countries in the past decade.

And he said Britain needs to “understand the realities of our power in today’s world” and enter new “structures and commitments” with the European Union on foreign policy.

Writing in The Observer, Mr Miliband said: “Britain still has global reach and global power, and retains hard and soft power. We are one of the richer countries and are privileged in our position on the UN security council.

“But we have an imperative to understand the realities of our power in today’s world.”

He added: “We do not have the finance of Saudi Arabia, the EU anchor of France, the regional activism and risk-appetite of Turkey, or the demographic strength of India or Indonesia. We are one among a number of ‘middle powers’ in the global system.

“Our wealth, military assets and reputation have all declined relative to others in the last decade.”

Mr Miliband said it was a “delusion” of Brexit to think Britain “held all the cards” and that the country’s destiny depended only on its own decisions, rather than its ability to “engage, incentivise, bargain with and deter others”.

“The danger for British policymakers was exemplified by the Johnson government, with its wishful thinking about our power and position in a world dominated by increasing global risks and muscular, transactional, adroit – sometimes predatory – nations and non-state actors, all growing in influence by the weakening of the multilateral system,” he added.

And Mr Miliband, who now runs the humanitarian International Rescue Committee (IRC) charity, said Britain needs to enter new arrangements with the EU on shared foreign policy, defence, security and development policy interests.

His comments go further than Labour’s promises on the EU so far, with the party having promised to forge a “closer relationship with our neighbours in the European Union”.

In an appeal to Brexit voters in December, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: “I voted Remain. There’s no shame or secret in that. But I know the vote to leave was a vote for change. And change at a much deeper level than our trading relationship with the European Union. It was a vote to say our country has got its priorities wrong.

“If you voted for Brexit seven years ago, if you voted for the Conservatives four years ago… you will not get it from a Tory fifth term. Only a change of government can bring change to our country.”

Mr Miliband warned that Britain’s global status could decline further under a second term for former president Donald Trump in the US.

And he wrote in The Observer that even if Joe Biden is reelected the “warning signs about American willingness, patience and ability to provide active and continuing strategic global leadership are still there”.

“Our position, on critical interests from the economy to the climate crisis, national security and international development, will get worse unless we get our act together. The reason is simple: the world is trending towards an unhealthy disequilibrium, and Britain is on the wrong side of some of the key trends,” Mr Miliband said.