Jackie Ashley in The Guardian argued that the division within the Labour adminbstration lies between the globalisers and the old Left who seek reassurance within 'social Europe'. This is one split, which lies within the economic and social concerns of the Labour party.
On the one side is the familiar centre-left case that the EU exists to protect its citizens against the pain of globalisation. It's the case Robin Cook made so eloquently for years. On the other is the claim that the old vision of an integrated social Europe is now bust, and the challenge is to embrace open markets, not raise walls. It is the case coming from the Brownites as much as Downing Street. People have been slow to spot it, maybe, because they are unused to divisions in Labour to be anything except Blair-Brown. But there is nothing abstract about this one; it will affect millions of ordinary working lives.
Ashley argues that this is a shift back towards the nation state. Yet, Labour makes little secret of its attempt to reorient British defences towards European needs. This approach is designed to maintain national power over those systems such as education, welfare and labour laws which ensure competitive advantage, increasing living standards and electoral success. Even Labour will not allow European incompetence to cost them seats at Westminster.
This is an argument for removing the dead hand of Brussels from all areas of national life in every European country.