Kemi Badenoch has accused Andy Burnham of ‘unpicking’ the original Brexit deal ahead of a UK-EU summit in Brussels on 20 November
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch criticised Andy Burnham (Image: Getty)
Andy Burnham has faced accusations of “unpicking” the original Brexit agreement following his announcement that a crucial UK-EU summit next month will be utilised to pursue fresh trade arrangements with the bloc.
The summit is scheduled for Brussels on November 20, where both parties aim to finalise a new food and drink accord, a youth mobility programme and an emissions trading agreement.
On Monday, Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch accused the Prime Minister of exposing his strategy ahead of negotiations. She told the Commons: “What has the Prime Minister chosen to focus on today? Brexit. Here he is unpicking the deal this country signed with the EU a decade after the referendum.
“He is not going to get a better deal. The EU are tough negotiators, and it’s not just that the EU are tough negotiators, he has already revealed his entire negotiating hand. 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.”
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Mr Burnham’s push for closer ties have been welcomed by figures including Mayor of London Sir Sadiq (Image: Getty)
Mr Burnham’s drive for strengthened relations has received backing from figures including Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan. He regards Brexit as “the biggest act of economic self-harm in the history of our country”, according to a spokesperson.
“That is why he wholeheartedly supports the Prime Minister’s ambition to seek a closer relationship with the EU to put our capital, country and continent on course for a more secure and prosperous future,” the spokesperson added. “The case for rejoining the EU has never been stronger – and Sadiq is clear that immediate steps should be taken to deepen integration with our European neighbours in order to boost our economy and drive up living standards.”
Naomi Smith, chief executive of Best for Britain, which campaigns for the UK to rejoin the EU, said: “Burnham’s approach to the damage Brexit has done to Britain is a breath of fresh air for our politics, but lasting relief requires lasting change, which will only hold if politicians recognise the broad consensus of belief across the country about the future of our relationship with Europe, free from foreign interference and influence.
“It’s clear that the facts have changed and with them voters’ minds have too, but they’re not won over by halfway house measures and there’s now a clear majority in favour of EU membership – and the £92bn economic transformation it can deliver to our communities.”
Mr Burnham also took the opportunity during his Commons appearance to soften his earlier remarks suggesting Russia attempted to influence the Brexit referendum.
The Prime Minister rejected any implication that he had questioned the legitimacy of the 2016 vote, following his statement on The Rest Is Politics podcast that upon entering No 10 he was informed it was “clear” Moscow had engaged in state-sponsored interference.
“It is a matter of record that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 general election and we think it is inconceivable that this was the first time,” he told MPs.
Andy Burnham accused of ‘inciting disorder’ as 781 migrants cross Channel in single day
Andy Burnham is accused of inciting disorder after a record 781 migrants crossed the Channel in one day, while Reform UK warns numbers are accelerating.
Andy Burnham accused of ‘inciting disorder’ over migrant crisis (Image: Getty)
Andy Burnham has been accused of inciting disorder across the country because of the way his Government is handling the migration crisis.
It comes after his administration suffered its worst day on record, with 781 illegal migrants breaking into the country in unlawful Channel crossings in a single day.
The record-breaking influx also saw two boats arrive on UK shores undetected, sparking fury in Westminster and triggering threats of protests at migrant sites.
Horrendous footage and pictures, seen in Thursday’s Daily Express, also show what appears to be a man abandoning a child in the water so he can climb aboard a crowded dinghy.
Reform UK’s Shadow Home Secretary Zia Yusuf warned that numbers were “accelerating” despite Home Office claims that the overall total had reduced.
He told Good Morning Britain that the UK has had “north of 210,000 people turn up on our beaches illegally in the past eight years” and warned “people’s lives are being turned upside down”.
Those comments were in relation to the village of Piddington, which recently hosted a symbolic referendum to leave the UK in protest against the housing of migrants at a nearby base.
Mr Yusuf said residents “are terrified that they are about to be outnumbered 10 to 1 by illegal migrant men”.
Home Office data shows a decline in the number of crossings this year, but critics say the overall figure remains far too high, with an insufficient number of people being sent back to their countries of origin.
Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf accuses Andy Burnham of inciting disorder (Image: Getty)
In a scathing attack on the Prime Minister, Mr Yusuf said: “Andy Burnham is inciting disorder in Britain by wielding the state’s monopoly on violence to impose unvetted men from countries like Afghanistan, Syria and Eritrea into local communities.”
He added: “This is unprecedented. I am worried the country is heading to a dark place.”
His remarks refer to footage showing coaches used to transfer migrants from the coast to immigration centres being accompanied by a police escort.
There have been mounting protests by masked men near locations used to hold migrants, though police support for security reasons is not uncommon.
