Labour MP Chuka Umunna launches 'Vote Leave Watch' to hold Brexit promises to account

A project has been launched to hold the Leave campaign's promises to account and ensure that their claims made during the EU referendum are lived up to. Launched on 8 July, Vote Leave Watch is being headed by Streatham's Labour MP, Chuka Umunna, who said that there is a need to ensure Leave politicians don't try to "wriggle out of the promises that they made to the electorate".

Within hours of its launch, Vote Leave Watch had already gained nearly 5,000 followers on Twitter. Describing the Leave campaign as having made "overblown, misleading claims" during the referendum, the campaign said that they hoped to bring together both Leave and Remain voters to ensure that the Brexit promises are kept.

On the day of the campaign launch, Umunna said: "We mustn't forget what has happened over the last few months. We mustn't forget the wild claims and impossible promises made by Tory Leavers like Andrea Leadsom, Michael Gove and Boris Johnson."

He went on to note that "backtracking" had already begun, citing the famous "£350m a week for the NHS" pledge that had been withdrawn since the referendum result. The Labour MP referred to Nigel Farage, who said the promise had been a "mistake" and Gove, who launched his campaign for Tory leadership by promising to boost the NHS "by a mere £100m a week".

Umunna highlighted other promises made by the Leave campaigners and promised to continue watching what was done about it. This included the promise to negotiate an exit deal based on "free trade and friendly cooperation" that would allow Britain to restrict immigration from Europe.

Umunna continued: "The Tory Leavers want us all to forget about the things they said during the campaign. For all voters – Leave or Remain – it is vital that this does not happen. At Vote Leave Watch, we will spend every day scrutinising Boris, Gove, Andrea Leadsom and the rest of them, and letting you know if they aren't delivering."

Umunna believes that Vote Leave Watch will allow Leave voters to get what they voted for. Speaking to BBC Newsbeat, he also added that this campaign would allow voters on both sides of the EU referendum debate to hold these politicians to account during the next General Election.