Burnham ties his EU summit hopes to a longer-term rethink of Brexit
Prime minister Andy Burnham told MPs he will seek food and drink, youth mobility and emissions trading deals at the EU summit on 20 November. He argues that being open to a longer-term rethink of the relationship improves his chances of success.
The Board Room · Leadership desk
Burnham says the package of deals would add over £10 billion a year to the UK economy by 2040. Government analysis cited by City AM says a food deal could add £9bn a year by 2040. Burnham says he will work harder over the next five weeks; the summit is in Brussels on 20 November.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Package value to UK economy by 2040, over, per Burnham | £10bn a year | 5 | |
| Food deal value by 2040, government analysis | £9bn a year | City AM, citing government analysis | 6 |
| Push to strike a deal | 5 weeks, Burnham | 2 | |
| Summit in Brussels | 20 November | 1 |
What happened
- The summit was postponed after Sir Keir Starmer resigned, and Burnham said he will "work harder over the next five weeks" to strike a deal.
- Burnham told MPs the package would add the equivalent of over £10 billion a year to the UK economy by 2040, with the potential to add significantly more.
- He acknowledged there could be a row with Brussels over the protectionist "Made in Europe" scheme and said the summit would let the UK raise its concerns.
- About a fortnight earlier, City AM reported, he said he would consider the customs union, the single market or going "all the way" to Rejoin.
Why it matters
- Who's exposed exposure British firms facing European carbon taxes are the group most exposed to a failed or delayed summit, because the emissions trading agreement is the item meant to spare them.
- What it limits constraint The Conservatives and Reform UK have said they would cancel any EU deal if either won office, so we'd expect Brussels to weigh that when deciding what to concede.
- What doesn't add up contradiction Burnham later said he would not revisit the manifesto red lines on the customs union and single market, which leaves the "different options" for his long-term dialogue undefined.
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Burnham has put his argument in a particular order. In the Commons he named the summit as the first priority and the long-term question as the second [9]. "Our immediate priority is securing a successful outcome at the summit, and I believe we should then set up a serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long term," he said [9]. The link between the two is his claim: "I believe our chances of doing so will be enhanced by being open to discussion about our relationship with the EU in the longer term" [4]. The claim works only if Brussels treats a promised dialogue as worth something at the table, and we think that step is untested.
The skeptic's case came from the Conservative leader. Kemi Badenoch said: "He has just blurted out everything he wants in this statement and I will tell him now, as a former trade secretary, this is not how you conduct negotiations" [7]. Burnham replied with a retort: "Because the Tories were so good, weren't they, at negotiating deals with our partners?" [8]
The retort does not engage the point, but the record supplies a better reply. Burnham described the arrangement as "the deal that I've inherited coming into office" [12], and City AM reports that the food standards and energy market agreements were proposed by his predecessor, Sir Keir Starmer [13]. We'd expect much of what he listed to be familiar to Brussels already. In our view Badenoch's objection lands harder on the longer-term opening, which is new. She also said Burnham's exact words earlier this year were "the last thing we should do right now is re-run those arguments" [11].
The money case is narrower than the total suggests. Government analysis cited by City AM put the food deal alone at £9bn a year by 2040 [6]. Burnham's figure for the whole package is more than £10 billion a year by the same year [5]. The reports do not say whether the two share a basis. If they do, about £1bn a year or a little more is left for the youth scheme, emissions trading and everything else [19], and the food and drink agreement is most of the economic case.
The time horizons differ. The package is a five-week problem [2], and the longer-term relationship is a later one that Burnham put second [9]. Signing on 20 November would not finish the first, because according to City AM the parliaments in the UK and EU must still agree the full terms of the arrangements [15]. We'd expect the terms signed at the summit to set the starting point for the dialogue he wants.
What to watch
- Whether EU leaders respond to Burnham's longer-term opening before 20 November, and how they handle the UK's concerns over Made in Europe.
- Whether Burnham spells out the "different options" for the post-summit dialogue and whether any of them crosses the manifesto bar on the customs union and single market.
- Whether the government publishes the analysis behind the £10 billion and £9bn figures, which would show if they share a basis.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence58
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+20
- Incentives65
- Confidence65
Perspective Coverage
3 publishers- Builder
- Builder 5%
- Operator
- Operator 50%
- Investor
- Investor 45%
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
Burnham told the Commons that the UK and EU will seek to sign a post-Brexit food and drink deal, a youth mobility scheme and an emissions trading agreement at an EU-UK summit in Brussels on 20 November.
- [2]
The summit was postponed because of Sir Keir Starmer's resignation, and Burnham said he will 'work harder over the next five weeks' to strike a deal.
- [3]
The emissions trading agreement the two sides will seek to sign is intended to avoid European carbon taxes on British business.
- [4]
Burnham said: 'I believe our chances of doing so will be enhanced by being open to discussion about our relationship with the EU in the longer term.'
- [5]
Burnham told MPs: 'Together, these deals will add the equivalent of over £10 billion per year to the UK economy by 2040, with the potential to add significantly more.'
- [6]
Government analysis suggested a deal on food could add £9bn a year to the UK economy by 2040.
- [7]
Kemi Badenoch said: 'He has just blurted out everything he wants in this statement and I will tell him now, as a former trade secretary, this is not how you conduct negotiations.'
- [8]
Burnham replied: 'Because the Tories were so good, weren't they, at negotiating deals with our partners?'
- [9]
Burnham said: 'Our immediate priority is securing a successful outcome at the summit, and I believe we should then set up a serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long term.'
- [10]
Burnham acknowledged there could be a row with Brussels over the protectionist 'Made in Europe' scheme and said the summit would also be an opportunity to raise the UK's concerns about it.
- [11]
Badenoch said Burnham's exact words earlier this year were 'the last thing we should do right now is re-run those arguments'.
- [12]
Burnham described 'the deal that I've inherited coming into office' as an opportunity to secure progress on boosting growth and controlling boat crossings.
- [13]
At the summit Burnham will look to sign off agreements on food standards and energy markets that were proposed by his predecessor, Sir Keir Starmer.
- [14]
The Conservatives and Reform UK have said they would cancel any deal agreed with the EU if either party was elected into government.
- [15]
Parliaments in the UK and EU will be required to agree the full terms of the new food standards, youth mobility and energy trading arrangements.
- [16]
In his address to party members Burnham said he would 'lay out' options for a 'long-term relationship' with the EU, and in later interviews said he would consider joining the customs union, the single market or going 'all the way' with a proposal to Rejoin; this came about a fortnight before the Commons statement.
- [17]
Labour's 2024 manifesto said the UK would not re-join the customs union or single market under a Labour government.
- [18]
Burnham later insisted he would not re-visit the red lines in the manifesto.
- [19]
If the £9bn food figure and the 'over £10 billion' package figure share a basis, the rest of the package accounts for a little over £1bn a year by 2040.
Sources
3 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.
- cityam.comBrexit U-turn? Burnham says he is taking ‘pragmatic’ approach on EU
1 article · October 12, 2026
- independent.co.ukBurnham calls on MPs to rethink Brexit to secure deal with EU
1 article · October 12, 2026
- theguardian.comThe Guardian view on Burnham’s Brexit reset: overdue, but proceed with care | Editorial
1 article · October 13, 2026