UK could get fast-track entry back into EU, new report says

Britain could be fast tracked back into the EU in the space of a single parliament, according to a new report backed by senior figures including a leading member of the European parliament.

The example of Finland, which joined the EU in less than three years in the mid-1990s, proves that the process can be speedy if there is already a high degree of alignment, the report, ‘How the UK joins the EU, and how long it would take’, by the pro-Europe campaign group Best for Britain found.

But there also has to be “strong political will”on both sides, researchers warned, after Andy Burnham left the door open to the UK rejoining the EU.

The prime minister announced at Labour’s annual conference last month that he would look at options that would take Britain closer to the bloc and suggested that re-entry into the EU could be included in Labour’s next election manifesto.

His announcement was welcomed by a number of EU leaders, including France’s president Emmanuel Macron and Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sanchez.

As part of The Independent’s Europe: The Way Back campaign, polling guru professor Sir John Curtice recently said that support for rejoining the EU was now at its highest level since the Brexit vote, at 61 per cent.

Attempting to rejoin the EU would require a series of negotiations. Once agreed, membership would also have to be unanimously approved by existing members of the bloc and then ratified in national parliaments.

The report said that the “example of Finland proves that the process can be far quicker when there is a high degree of existing alignment and strong political will.”

The UK’s trade talks with India took more than three years, a total of 40 months, the study highlights.

It found a number of potential stumbling blocks, such as whether the UK should join the euro and the Schengen passport-free travel zone, could be overcome, noting countries like Sweden and Denmark did not use the single currency.

Former UK trade department official Oliver Nicholls, who led the report, said: “No country has ever walked this path as a former member, already closely aligned and sharing the EU’s values... with the political will, Britain could be back at the table within a single parliament.”

That view was endorsed by MEP Sandro Gozi, the chair of the UK-EU Parliamentary Partnership Assembly.

“As a former member, and with much of the regulatory framework already in place, I personally do not see any serious reason why an application from the UK would not be achievable within one parliament,” he said.

Sir Jonathan Faull, a former senior EU Commission official, welcomed the report and said it was a “sober and useful contribution” to the Brexit debate.

The UK would enter any reaccession talks in a unique position because it bore the “imprint of decades of membership”, he said, adding: “The timetable would depend on the clarity and constancy of political will on both sides.”

As prime minister Andy Burnham looks at the way ahead for Britain's relationship with Europe, The Independent has been leading the charge, campaigning to secure the absolute best deal for Britain. Become an Independent member for just £1 for six months and join a like-minded community of thousands signed up to our Europe: The Way Back campaign.

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