Burnham says he has not proposed return to EU freedom of movement
UK Labour politician Andy Burnham said in an ITV interview that he has not proposed bringing back EU freedom of movement, while urging an honest debate on Brexit's effects. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood defended her softened settlement rules.
Andy Burnham, a senior Labour politician in the United Kingdom, said in an ITV interview for a documentary due to air on the evening of 3 November that he has not proposed bringing back freedom of movement with the European Union. He did call for an honest discussion about how immigration has changed since the Brexit vote. The debate matters because the government's migration policy and its relationship with the EU are both under scrutiny in London.
Burnham's message
Burnham said short-term migration from Europe, where people came and then went home, has been replaced by larger-scale long-term settlement. He said public opinion has changed nationally, but that he will not run ahead of it: the public must be the boss on whatever happens with Brexit.
The Guardian's live blog notes that Burnham has made no specific proposals on a new EU relationship and has only opened a debate. It adds that he has said he would like the UK to rejoin the EU in his lifetime, which would also mean accepting freedom of movement.
Mahmood and settlement rules
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that, because of her changes, roughly half a million people who would have settled after five years will not now do so. Her rules on indefinite leave to remain are notably less strict than those announced in November 2025, so they are widely described as a U-turn. When the BBC's Iain Watson put it to her that the concessions would effectively cost about £7.5bn, she did not confirm the figure and said an impact assessment would be published in due course. She did not deny that Burnham had in effect ordered her to change course.
On Sky News, Mahmood declined to say what she thought about the UK rejoining freedom of movement. She stressed that Labour is bound by its manifesto, which ruled out single market membership before the next election.
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