Tony Blair warns Labour against trying to ‘out-Ukip’ Nigel Farage

Britain leaving the European Union would be viewed as an "extraordinary act of self-destruction", Tony Blair has said.

The former prime minister said there was a "high degree of alarm" worldwide about the possibility of the United Kingdom severing ties with Brussels. as he warned Labour against trying to "out-Ukip" Nigel Farage's party.

Mr Blair criticised Prime Minister David Cameron’s plan to renegotiate the terms of EU membership in a referendum by the end of 2017.

In a interview with the Wall Street Journal, Mr Blair set out how he would deal with the threat from Ukip, saying Labour “would not lose” by standing up for membership of the EU.

He said the way to deal with Ukip was to “analyse their policies, show how destructive they would be” and set out positive alternatives “rather than joining in selling people a false and illusory elixir of hope . . . around if you stop more Polish people coming to Britain, you’re going to provide more jobs in the poorest communities in the UK”.

“To pull Britain out of the European Union altogether would be regarded around the world as an extraordinary act of self-destruction,” he said.

However, Mr Blair added that British concerns about the EU were not “totally out of line with the rest of Europe”.

Tories have seized on his comments as a veiled criticism of Labour leader Ed Miliband.

Mr Blair was critical of the rise of Tory euroscepticism and the suggestion by former cabinet minister Owen Paterson that Mr Cameron should immediately begin the process of applying to leave the EU whether he won the next election or not.

The former prime minister said the United Kingdom would have a better chance of building alliances and securing reform if the issue of its membership was not on the table.

Discussing domestic politics, Mr Blair said the key to winning a majority in 2015 was having a “strong political lead” in the centre ground, combining “the politics of aspiration with the politics of compassion”.

PA