Ten years after the Brexit referendum, Britain is bracing for a new Prime Minister in Andy Burnham, and Remainers are circling like vultures. For those with Brexit derangement syndrome on both sides of the English Channel, Burnham’s arrival offers a golden opportunity to hitch the UK back up to Brussels.
Burnham's Ambiguous Stance on Brexit
Burnham told Labour members at the party’s conference last September: “Long-term, I’m going to be honest, I’m going to say it, I want to rejoin it. I respect the decision that was made at the referendum and it is going to undermine everything I have said about strengthening democracy if we don’t respect that vote.” However, while fighting the heavily Leave-voting seat of Makerfield, he insisted he was “not proposing that the UK considers rejoining the EU”.
It’s hard to know what he really thinks because he tells everyone what they want to hear. So we must look to the people around him to work out what we can expect under his rule.
Stella Creasy: Chairwoman of Labour Movement for Europe
In a selfie Burnham took with hundreds of Labour MPs upon arriving in Parliament after the PM who got them elected quit, Stella Creasy was in prime position, beaming like a toddler on Christmas Day. Creasy is chairwoman of the Labour Movement for Europe, which pledges to support “all those who wish to see our nation’s future in Europe secured”. In March, she insisted: “Everything must be on the table. We must come back together.” On the anniversary of the referendum, she posted on X: “A lost decade and a future worth fighting for. One day, many emotions, never giving up.”
Wes Streeting: Backbencher Calling for EU Rejoin
Another figure expected to play a major role is Wes Streeting, whose decision to quit as Health Secretary elevated discussions around Keir Starmer’s future. Streeting knows how popular the Rejoin cause is with Labour activists, so quickly announced on his return to the backbenches: “We need a new special relationship with the EU, because Britain's future lies with Europe, and one day - one day - back in the European Union.”
A so-called reset summit with the EU due next month has been postponed until Burnham takes over, with officials in Brussels believing he will be even more “amenable” than Starmer and admitting there is now “hope” in the bloc. The talks were to sign off a youth mobility scheme and changes to trade in food, drink and energy.
David Miliband: Potential Foreign Secretary
Most alarming of all would be the return of David Miliband. Burnham is tipped to bring the ultimate globalist back into Westminster via a peerage to have another run as Foreign Secretary. Burnham has no discernible foreign policy platform and needs someone with a fully formed vision. Miliband has branded Brexit an act of economic “sabotage”, estimating it has cost up to £30 billion a year. He wants a “much higher dosage in our reset” with the EU and thinks Britain should ultimately rejoin.
Anti-Brexit figures in Brussels have already begun calls for rejoin after it became clear Burnham will replace Starmer. In Parliament, Rejoiner Lib Dem Ed Davey used PMQs to call for Burnham to “rebuild” relations with the EU.
We have only a few weeks to wait to find out who will make the final cut. What we do know for sure is that the new Labour government will cosy up even further to Brussels than Starmer did. Prepare for Brexit betrayal.
