Ed Balls clashed with Labour MP Chris McDonald in a heated exchange on Good Morning Britain over the possibility of the UK rejoining the European Union. The ITV presenter challenged the politician live on air after recent comments by Prime Minister Andy Burnham sparked speculation about a closer relationship with Brussels.
Rising support for rejoining EU
In recent months, support for reversing Brexit has risen since Andy Burnham opened the door to Britain rejoining the EU again. The Prime Minister fuelled speculation about a return to freedom of movement in an interview last week, prompting questions about how close the UK could become to Brussels.
It forced a Downing Street spokesperson to say the Labour leader was not proposing a return to freedom of movement, or any particular option. They clarified: "He is saying that it's time for us to discuss what kind of long-term relationship with Europe is best for Britain, and he is referring to the types of areas that that agreement and long-term future could hold. He is crucially not leaning either way, and that will be for the British public to decide," they added.
Live clash on the show
On Monday morning (November 2), the Good Morning Britain host and his co-star, Susanna Reid, welcomed Labour MP Chris McDonald onto the show to discuss the latest developments further. Ed began: "The Prime Minister said on Monday last week (October 26) that he wanted the UK to rejoin the European Union in his lifetime. Do you think we will rejoin the EU within this government while Andy Burnham is Prime Minister?"
The politician replied: "I don't think there's any chance of the UK joining the EU within this Parliament, which I think is what we're all talking about here. In fact, that's getting very much ahead of ourselves. What the Prime Minister was talking about is the fact that we've got an EU summit coming up in just three weeks' time where there are some really important issues on the table."
"Not least, how we'll engage with the EU around our industrial supply chains, particularly in automotive as well," he explained. "What the Prime Minister's been doing is setting the scene for positive and constructive negotiation there, but in doing that, he's acknowledged that the current arrangement with the EU just doesn't work for the country. It's bad for the country, it was a very bad deal, and it's had bad consequences economically. It's left us uncertain and created a lot of business red tape as well. So we'd like to get an improvement in that situation."
Balls shuts down the MP
The 59-year-old summarised: "So you'd like us to rejoin the European Union, that's what you've just described, and explained all the reasons why leaving was such a bad idea."
