UK rejoining EU idea welcomed by Macron and Sanchez

French President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez welcomed the possibility of Britain rejoining the European Union after UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said a return to the bloc was among the options to consider.

Burnham said his centre-left Labour government could “go all the way” and propose membership after weighing the pros and cons of different possible relationships with Europe. He also said Britain could look at joining the European single market and customs union.

“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 at a news conference in Madrid on Wednesday. He added in English: “Welcome back.”

Sanchez said that if Britain asked to rejoin, Spain would “applaud it and open its arms again to a brotherly people”.

Burnham, prime minister since July after Labour MPs removed Keir Starmer, told Labour's annual conference on Tuesday that Britain's departure from the EU in 2020 had done “more harm than good”. He said Brexit had triggered “a decade of low growth” and that Britain must decide on a long-term relationship with its largest trading partner.

Burnham said he would set out “different options” closer to a planned summit with the 27-member bloc later this year. He said the government would have to look at what was doable and assess the pros and cons of each option.

The comments drew immediate criticism from right-wing rivals. Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice accused Burnham of trying to take Britain back into the EU “via the back door”, while Conservative deputy leader Alex Burghart accused the prime minister of looking “backwards”.

Britain left the EU after voters backed leaving by 52 percent to 48 percent in the 2016 referendum. A Survation poll in June found that 55 percent of voters would choose to rejoin if another referendum were held.

David Henig, an expert on UK-EU relations, told AFP that Burnham was recognising what Henig described as a widespread view that Brexit had failed and that closer ties were needed. Anand Menon, director of the UK in a Changing Europe think-tank, cautioned that Burnham's remarks did not necessarily mark the start of a return journey.

Burnham is still bound by Starmer's 2024 election-winning manifesto, which ruled out joining a customs union, returning to the single market or allowing the return of freedom of movement with the EU. His comments indicate he may remove some of those red lines before the next general election, expected in 2029.

An EU official told AFP the bloc was looking to hold a postponed UK-EU summit in November, though the date was not confirmed. The two sides had hoped to present deals at the summit on food and animal safety standards, a youth mobility scheme and linking 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.