‘Welcome back,’ says Macron, as UK PM opens door to EU return

Andy Burnham put the idea of Britain rejoining the EU on the table Wednesday, breaking a taboo for a UK prime minister and leading French President Emmanuel Macron to declare in English “Welcome back”.

Burnham reopened the divisive Brexit debate by saying his centre-left Labour government could go “all the way” and propose membership of the bloc after weighing the “pros and cons” of different possible relationships with Europe.

Right-wing rivals immediately criticised the comments, as the UK appeared to be gearing up for a re-run of the bitter “Brexit wars” that dominated its politics following the contentious 2016 vote to leave the European Union.

Burnham, premier since July after Labour MPs turfed out Keir Starmer, told his party’s annual conference on Tuesday that Britain’s departure in 2020 had done “more harm than good”.

He said Brexit had triggered “a decade of low growth” and Britain must “decide on a long-term relationship” with its largest trading partner.

Burnham promised to set out “different options” closer to a planned summit with the 27-member bloc later this year.

Possibilities that could be looked at included joining the European single market and customs union, “or we could go all the way”, Burnham told BBC radio on Wednesday.

“So there are clearly options that need to be considered, and we have to look at what is doable, and what would be the pros and cons of each,” he added.

Macron, speaking at a news conference in Madrid after talks with Spanish Prime MInister Pedro Sanchez, welcomed the idea.

“If the British want to come back and if the prime minister is moving in that direction, I think that is very good news both for his country and for Europeans,” Macron said.

“Come back,” he added.

Sanchez echoed Macron’s comments, saying if the UK asks to rejoin “then of course Spain would applaud it and open its arms again to a brotherly people”.

– Brexit polls –

Britain’s right-wing Conservative party took the country out of the EU after Britons voted to leave by 52 percent to 48 percent.

A poll by Survation in June found that 55 percent of voters would opt to rejoin if a referendum was held again.

“I think Burnham is recognising the widespread view in the country that Brexit has failed, and in the Labour Party that closer ties are needed,” David Henig, an expert on UK-EU relations, told AFP.

Burnham is currently bound by Starmer’s 2024 election-winning manifesto which ruled out joining a customs union, going back into the single market or allowing the return of freedom of movement with the EU.

Burnham’s comments indicate he plans to remove some of those red lines going into the campaign for the next general election, expected in 2029.

– Realistic option? –

Sandro Gozi, a European lawmaker who chairs a parliamentary initiative on EU-UK relations, told AFP that Burnham’s willingness to openly explore options offered a “historic opportunity” for the European Union.

But Anand Menon, director of the UK in a Changing Europe think-tank, cautioned against any suggestion that Burnham’s comments mark the start of a return journey.

“All he seems to have said is: ‘We’ll have a conversation about it now’. There are quite a few people in his cabinet who would not want to see him spending a lot of time and effort dealing with Europe,” he told AFP.

– Reform criticism –

Burnham campaigned to stay in the EU and has previously said he hoped Britain would return within his lifetime.

But during his successful campaign to return to parliament in June and replace Starmer in Downing Street, Burnham insisted he did not want to “rerun” the Brexit debate.

Richard Tice, deputy leader of the anti-EU Reform UK party, said Burnham was “trying to sneak us back into Brussels via the back door”, while Tory deputy leader Alex Burghart accused the prime minister of looking “backwards”.

The UK-EU summit had been due to be held in July in Brussels, but was postponed when Starmer was ousted.

An EU official told AFP the bloc was looking to hold the meeting in November, but the date was not confirmed.

“Clearly, the mood is positive and commitment to have a good summit is definitely there,” the official said added.

The two sides had been hoping to present several deals at the summit, namely on food and animal safety standards, a youth mobility scheme and the linking of their emissions-trading systems.

Negotiations are believed to have stalled over British concerns about the EU’s “Made in Europe” plans to protect certain industries.

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