Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said Britain should have an “honest discussion” about whether EU free movement could return as part of a new relationship between the UK and the European Union. His remarks, made in an interview with the Sunday Times published on 25 October 2026, drew immediate criticism from the Conservatives and Reform UK, a more welcoming response from the Liberal Democrats, and a defence from his own cabinet.
A day later, on Monday 26 October, Burnham said he would not return the UK to EU freedom of movement rules without a referendum, PA Media reported. He said he would “never move ahead of the British public when it comes to Brexit”.
The comments come less than four weeks before he is due to meet EU leaders at a summit in Brussels on 20 November.
What Burnham said about EU free movement
According to PA Media’s report of the interview, published on the evening of 24 October, Burnham said the options for Britain’s future relationship with the EU included full membership or joining the single market, both of which would involve free movement of people. He argued that any debate on the issue should rest on facts and evidence.
Burnham accepted that free movement had brought significant challenges when the UK was in the EU. But he said migration from the EU had mostly involved younger people who stayed for a few years and then went home, and argued that the overall pattern of migration had changed since Brexit.
He also set limits. He said he could not see himself ever recommending that Britain join the euro or the Schengen border-free area.
The 2024 manifesto red lines
Burnham has said he remains bound by Labour’s 2024 general election manifesto, which ruled out a return to free movement, single market membership or a customs union. Euronews reported that he may seek a mandate for any major change at the next general election, which is not expected until 2029. He has promised to set out options for a closer relationship around the time of the Brussels summit.
Free movement has been back on the agenda partly because of talks on a youth mobility scheme, an idea that featured in the post-Brexit UK-EU deal agreed in May 2025.
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How the government defended the remarks
Housing Secretary Angela Rayner defended the Prime Minister on BBC One’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on 25 October. According to PA Media, she said nothing could be ruled out when the UK was in talks with the EU, but stressed that Burnham was not proposing a return to the position before the 2016 referendum. She argued that the current arrangements were not the best deal for Britain, pointing to what she said was a 20% fall in exports, and said she wanted an honest conversation about the possible trade-offs.
How the opposition parties responded
Conservatives
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described the interview as another case of Burnham’s “foot-in-mouth syndrome”, PA Media reported, and said he had not thought through the consequences. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said a return to free movement would mean giving up control of Britain’s borders, and that voters had chosen to end it.
Reform UK
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called the comments a “total betrayal of Brexit Britain” and, according to LBC, vowed to fight what he called Burnham’s dishonesty over immigration. Reform’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick told the BBC he rejected the idea that Britain needed more immigration.
Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper took a different view. According to PA Media, she said free movement of people, alongside free movement of capital and trade, would be good for economic growth, and called for red tape to be cut.
Why it matters
Free movement was one of the central issues in the 2016 referendum, and the EU treats it as a condition of single market membership. In September, Burnham had already said Britain should consider its options for a future relationship with the EU, including rejoining, Sky News reported.
The immediate test is the 20 November summit. Both sides have said they hope to reach agreements on food and drink, youth mobility and emissions trading. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on social media on 12 October that she was looking forward to the meeting, citing trade, energy, Ukraine and security cooperation. On Burnham’s own account, any return to free movement would require a referendum, and any fundamental change to the relationship would wait until after the next general election.
Sources: The Irish News/PA Media, Burnham: Time for ‘honest discussion’ about freedom of movement with EU (24 October 2026); The Irish News/PA Media, Rayner: Nothing off table in Burnham’s talks with European Union (25 October 2026); The Irish News/PA Media, Burnham says he will not return UK to EU freedom of movement without referendum (26 October 2026); Euronews, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham wants ‘honest discussion’ on return to EU free movement (25 October 2026); LBC, report on Burnham and EU free movement (25 October 2026); Sky News via Radio X, PM open to ‘honest discussion’ about return to free movement with EU (25 October 2026).
