Burnham says Brexit status quo not good enough as EU leaders welcome closer ties

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has opened a debate on Britain's long-term relationship with the European Union, saying the post-Brexit status quo is not working and that the country must take a 'calm, clear-eyed, rational look' at its options. In a Commons statement after the UN General Assembly, he said the immediate priority was a successful UK-EU summit in Brussels on 20 November. After that, he said, there should be a 'serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long term.' He added: 'Sticking with the status quo is not good enough for Britain.' Turning away, he said, would be a 'major dereliction of duty.' He also said the British public would be 'the boss' at every stage.

The remarks go further than the government's earlier position. Burnham has kept to the existing red lines on the customs union, the single market and freedom of movement for now. But he did not rule out changing those red lines in a future manifesto or holding another referendum. In interviews, he gave different answers. He told one outlet that a future referendum was possible, another that referendums 'do damage', and another that he would not rule out a manifesto commitment to rejoin replacing a referendum. He mentioned the customs union in some interviews and the single market in others.

The November summit was rescheduled after Keir Starmer left government. Its agenda is expected to include sanitary and phytosanitary rules on animal products, emissions trading and a youth experience scheme. Officials are said to avoid the word 'mobility' because it is politically sensitive. The statement was pre-briefed to journalists, and analysis of the speech noted that around 60% of it dealt with the EU rather than foreign affairs.

Political reaction has been mixed. Some Labour MPs in Red Wall seats are nervous about reopening Brexit. The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, accused Burnham of unpicking the deal the UK signed with the EU. The Liberal Democrats welcomed the shift. Nigel Farage launched a fierce counterattack at Doncaster Racecourse, challenging Burnham to a one-on-one debate on the EU. 'If Andy Burnham, the King of the North, wants a fight in Doncaster and the Red Wall with me on rejoining the European Union, then bring it on, I say,' Farage said. He called the row a boost for Reform and said Burnham had an 'outdated vision' of the EU. Doncaster voted about 70% Leave in 2016.

Farage and other critics argued that closer ties would mean accepting freedom of movement and more immigration. They pointed to claims that rejoining could cost up to £41bn a year in gross fees and that 750,000 migrants from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Eritrea have become EU citizens since Brexit. Supporters of a closer relationship said the UK needs an honest conversation about trade, security and co-operation, and that the old leave versus remain argument should not be rerun in the same way.

Government minister Alex Norris said Burnham would say more about the options in the autumn and that ministers would not 'run ahead' of the process. He said decisions would be judged on whether they make the British public better off. He also said Brexit had had an impact on business, while pointing to UK growth. Labour's Emily Thornberry said most people in Britain now believed leaving the EU was a mistake and described putting rejoining in the next Labour manifesto as 'quite sensible.' She said questions about freedom of movement, Schengen and the euro would have to be part of the debate. Other Labour figures warned that a full-blown Brexit debate could be divisive.

EU leaders in Brussels gave a mostly positive response when asked about Britain rejoining. One said: 'If Britain is ready to come back, we're ready to welcome them.' Another said Britain should 'come back to the family.' A senior European figure called Brexit one of the biggest catastrophes for the EU. Another said the UK must 'learn its lesson' this time. The openness from Brussels will encourage those who want a closer relationship, but it also underlines the difficult terms any return would involve.

Burnham also faced questions about Russian interference in the 2016 referendum. He said it was 'inconceivable' there was no involvement before 2019, then clarified that the government regarded the referendum as legitimate. The exchange added to the sense that his EU remarks have reopened a series of arguments that Labour had tried to avoid. For now, the story is less about a formal rejoin bid than about Burnham testing the political space for a closer long-term relationship, while opponents try to make him own the consequences.