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‘Welcome back’: Macron would support UK attempts to rejoin EU
French President and Spanish Prime Minister would be open to UK returning to bloc, as Prime Minister Andy Burnham opens door to closer links
France would welcome any attempts by the UK to rejoin the European Union, French President Emmanuel Macron has said.
However, this would be contingent on the UK not ‘cherry-picking’ what elements of the membership it wanted to be a part of.
Mr Macron approved of the idea at a press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez during a state visit to Spain.
When questioned on the matter of the UK rejoining the bloc, Mr Macron replied “Welcome back,” in English.
The comments came as UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham outlined closer UK-EU relations as a potential goal for his tenure.
His commitment came during his speech at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool this week, where he said Brexit “had done more harm than good,” for the UK.
‘Very good news for UK and Europe’
“If the British want to come back and if the prime minister is moving in that direction, I think that is very good news both for his country and for Europeans,” Mr Macron said to reporters.
However, he outlined that his support would be based on the UK rejoining the bloc, and not just for select schemes.
“You cannot choose between the freedoms of the union and decide to take what suits [you] and not the rest,” he said.
This comment comes as the UK aims to be included in the upcoming ‘Made in Europe’ scheme, a wider reindustrialisation and decarbonisation programme.
There is a possibility for the UK to be included but France remains a staunch critic of allowing non-EU countries to join.
The French president did however praise the UK for its work while part of the EU, arguing the country had “always been useful in helping us simplify things,” and called Brexit “the biggest lie of the last 30 years.”
Mr Sánchez also welcomed such a move, calling it “good news,” for the EU, and that if the UK wanted to rejoin the bloc then “of course Spain would applaud it and open its arms again to a brotherly people.”
He also criticised Brexit, calling it “a huge loss, both for the British population and for the whole European project.”
Further support has come from across the bloc, with MEP Sandro Gozi also backing any attempt to rejoin.
“[Mr] Burnham has finally swept away the so-called red lines that have constrained the debate on Britain’s relationship with Europe. That is a welcome and important step,” said the MEP, who co-chairs the EU-UK parliamentary partnership assembly, to The Guardian.
“Europe should respond with the same openness. We should be ready to turn the page and build a new EU-UK partnership, removing unnecessary barriers and restoring much closer economic and political cooperation,” he added.
Is the UK really planning to rejoin the EU?
Mr Burnham has not committed to the UK rejoining the EU, but said on Wednesday that it was one of several possibilities for the country, saying that closer ties to the bloc are one of several options.
However, there is no guarantee these would happen.
“We could stay as we are. That is definitely an option, if people think this is the right place to stay,” he said to the BBC.
Other alternatives seen as a mid-way point between current relations and rejoining the bloc include deeper trade ties, including a customs union or rejoining the single market.
Brexit remains a deeply divisive issue in the UK political sphere and any attempt to reignite the debate would face challenges.
It is also possible that the EU could take a hardline approach to the UK rejoining, even with backing from several member states.
