MAIL ON SUNDAY COMMENT: If shameless PM had been more honest about his EU dream he might not be in No10
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If Britain rejoins the EU, we will have to take in 4,400 asylum seekers a year or pay Brussels almost £1.5million a week. If we refused, we would be fined by the EU’s Luxembourg-based Court of Justice, like some delinquent.
What an outrage. Of all the many things Britain does not currently need, we especially do not want to be bullied by outsiders into taking in yet more migrants.
This is, of course, only part of the meddling, bossy edicts and demands for money that this country would face if it submitted itself, once again, to European rule.
Why is this even an issue? We went through years of debate, took a clear decision and then went through more years of pain while we negotiated our exit.
Last summer, during the Makerfield by-election in which he was painlessly whisked back to Westminster, Mr Burnham appeared to recognise this. He said a number of very clear things on the subject, such as ‘The last thing we should do right now is re-run those arguments. I am not proposing that the UK considers rejoining the EU.’
And then he explained: ‘I respect the decision that was made at the referendum, and it is going to undermine everything I have said about strengthening democracy if we don’t respect that vote.’ He was quite right about that. But since September, he has played a different tune and sung a different song. He now says he would like to see the UK rejoin the superstate in his lifetime. What of his previous pledges? He says they apply in this Parliament – a Parliament he can and will end, perhaps sooner than many think.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham speaking today during the Welsh Labour conference. Last summer he said: '‘I respect the decision that was made at the referendum, and it is going to undermine everything I have said about strengthening democracy if we don’t respect that vote'
This behaviour is far beyond shocking, and the Prime Minister should be in much more trouble as a result. He has actually gone back on public pledges, clearly made, which helped him to win the by-election that brought him to Downing Street – his only democratic mandate so far.
What would have happened in Makerfield if Mr Burnham had said then what he says now? The constituency area voted strongly for Brexit in 2016.
A month before the vote there was serious speculation that Reform might win it. Mr Burnham’s promise to respect that decision might well have turned the vote. Politicians are notorious for going back on promises, but this is one of the most outrageous switches in modern times.
Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage should take note that they are facing a premier who is utterly shameless. After all this, why should we believe his October 28 pledge ‘I can rule out calling a general election in the next 12 months’? The parties that stand for conservative Britain, and which are committed to keeping us independent, should quickly learn to work together.
They may enjoy squabbling, as in the row over migration between Tory Chris Philp and Reform’s Zia Yusuf in Piddington on Friday. But there is no time to waste on such self-indulgence.
By continuing to fight each other, Tories and Reform could easily allow Mr Burnham, backed by the slavishly pro-EU Liberal Democrats, to undo Brexit. That would be a straightforward disaster. They should do everything they can to prevent it.
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