Jeremy Corbyn, the recently elected leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, has been pretty much refusing to do any media since he got the top job. But Corbyn on Thursday broke the silence in a pretty unexpected way — by writing an editorial on Europe in the Financial Times. The FT is the paper of the City and usually associated with right of centre, free market views. It's the last place you'd expect to find Corbyn, an avowed trade unionist and socialist. The crucial point Corbyn makes in the piece is that under him Labour will be pro-Europe, but that he will fight for social reforms and try to reverse any erosion of workers' right that David Cameron or any Brussels politicians pursue. He also wants the debate on the upcoming European Union referendum in Britain to focus more on social issues. Here's Corbyn: Too much of the referendum debate has been monopolised by xenophobes and the interests of corporate boardrooms. Left out of this debate are millions of ordinary British people who want a proper debate about our relationship with the EU. We cannot continue down this road of free-market deregulation, which seeks to privatise public services and dilute Europe’s social gains. Draft railway regulations that are now before the European Parliament could enforce the fragmented, privatised model that has so failed railways in the UK. He concludes: "Labour is clear that we should remain in the EU. But we too want to see reform." Some of the reforms that he wants to see include on agriculture policy, following protests in Brussels last week, and support for the financial transaction tax. Corbyn also uses the editorial to say he has been "appalled" by the treatment of Greece by Europe, saying: "The current orthodoxy has failed. We need a new economic settlement." You can read the full editorial here. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Secrets of the Statue of Liberty
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