Sunday Papers: Burnham and Streeting Want to Rejoin the EU
Both Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting would seek a mandate to rejoin the European Union if elected Labour leader on its front page; the Sunday Times leads with “Britain should rejoin EU, declares Streeting”. In a speech to the Progress conference on Saturday, Streeting called leaving the EU a “catastrophic mistake”, said Britain needs a new “special relationship” with the bloc, and concluded: “Britain’s future lies with Europe — and one day back in the European Union.” Reform UK will make “Brexit betrayal” a central by-election attack.
Telegraph sources close to Burnham confirmed he stands by his Labour conference 2025 line: “Long term, I’m going to be honest, I’m going to say it, I want to rejoin it. Look, I hope in my lifetime I see this country rejoin the European Union.” He said on Saturday that “in the long term there is a case” for rejoining, but is “not advocating that in this by-election”. The Sunday Times reports Streeting’s remarks have “electrified the race to succeed Sir Keir Starmer” and signal an end to what it calls “the longstanding omertà” among senior Labour figures who want closer EU alignment. The diagnostic question for the Makerfield by-election is whether the EU position offsets or amplifies the Reform threat in a seat where Reform won every council ward last week.