Prime Minister Andy Burnham is facing widespread anger over his plans to forge closer ties with the European Union, with questions mounting over whether the UK should hold a snap general election if he attempts to reverse Brexit.
In a lengthy statement to MPs, Burnham insisted the public will be “the boss” regarding any future closer relationship with the bloc, arguing that “the status quo is not enough for Britain”. However, he repeatedly refused to rule out taking the UK back into the EU single market after the general election, claiming it would boost economic growth.
Burnham's EU push triggers backlash
“It would be a major dereliction of duty to turn away” from the conversation about the EU-UK relationship, Burnham said, criticising the Brexit deal negotiated by the last Tory government. He declared he would use an EU summit next month as a launchpad for restoring ties, and said he would meet European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on November 20.
His latest move on Brexit sparked immediate fury. Reform UK's Nigel Farage said the PM's actions are an insult to the 17.4 million people who voted to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum.
Political reactions and election speculation
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Burnham of “unpicking” the original Brexit deal and “blurting out everything he wants” from the EU, warning that is “not how you conduct negotiations”.
Ben Judah, a special adviser to David Lammy in the Foreign Office until earlier this year, believes the prime minister could pull off an election victory to rival Boris Johnson's in 2019 if he seized the moment on Europe. The former government adviser thinks Burnham should make undoing Brexit the centrepiece of the campaign.
Daily Express columnist Esther McVey said: “This potential impending election would undoubtedly be framed as a quest to secure a personal mandate for 'Manchester Andy'. In reality, it is a smash-and-grab mission to hike taxes and fleece the British public.”
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