Burnham leaves door open to EU return and blames Brexit for borders

Andy Burnham has left open Britain rejoining the European Union from as soon as 2030 while blaming Brexit for weaker border controls and a hit to the economy.

Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain ahead of 100 days in office, the Prime Minister said the country got “a harder Brexit than was proposed in the referendum campaign.” He stated it had “weakened our economy” and “weakened our control of immigration,” adding that the small boats crisis “has arisen since” and that Britain now faces “a different form of migration.”

He ruled out rejoining during this Parliament, which ends in 2029. Pressed on whether he wanted Britain back in, he said he would like to see it happen “in my lifetime” but would not “move ahead of the public.” Those words keep the door open from 2030 onwards.

Burnham also called for an “honest discussion” about a possible return to free movement as part of a new relationship with the bloc. He wants options considered that could include full membership or the single market, both of which bring free movement. Labour’s 2024 manifesto red lines barred free movement, single market membership and a customs union, so any big shift would wait until after the next election.

Nigel Farage gave the clear verdict voters needed. The Reform UK leader said the comments were “a total betrayal of Brexit Britain and his Makerfield pitch.” He added that Burnham is “deluded to say immigration was different when we were members of the EU” and vowed: “We will fight this dishonesty.”

Britain voted to take back control of its borders and its laws. Blaming Brexit for the boats while floating free movement again treats that vote as temporary. Sovereignty is not a phase. A smaller state that decides who enters is the point of leaving, not a talking point for later summits.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp warned that a return to EU free movement would mean “handing back control of our borders and allowing uncontrolled migration from across Europe.” He noted the British people voted to end free movement and there can be no return to it. London Mayor Lord Sadiq Khan is among those pushing rejoining, while Dame Emily Thornberry has argued a manifesto pledge in 2029 could ditch Brexit without a second referendum.

What comes next in Brussels

Burnham will meet European Union chiefs at a summit on November 20 in Brussels and push for closer trade and other ties. He has said he will use the period around that meeting to set out different options for the future relationship to the British public. Polls are being cited by Labour figures who claim more people now see Brexit as a mistake, yet the original vote remains the mandate.

The Prime Minister has previously stuck to the manifesto limits. Any move toward free movement or membership would reverse the core promise that control of immigration sits in Britain, not Brussels. Farage and Reform UK have drawn the line: the dishonesty will be fought. Voters who backed Brexit, including in seats such as Makerfield, are entitled to hold that line without being told the boats are somehow Brexit’s fault rather than a failure of policy and enforcement at home.

Commentary: Andy Burnham leaves open UK rejoining EU from 2030 as he slams Brexit fo

Original source: The Standard

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