Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he believes a "win-win" deal can be agreed with the European Union, as a new opinion poll shows more than half of voters in Northern Ireland favour the United Kingdom rejoining the bloc.
Speaking after meeting European leaders in Dublin on Thursday, Burnham said the agreement could be "more like the Brexit that people thought they were voting for" in 2016, but predicted the negotiations could "go down to the wire" before a UK-EU summit in Brussels on November 20, where he is expected to sign new accords on food, energy and youth mobility.
"We've got a big week ahead of us to try and get this deal over the line," Burnham said. "But let's be clear what's at stake: what we can achieve through this deal is lower prices for British consumers, lower costs for British businesses, more growth in our economy so there's really big prizes here, and I will fight now over the days to come to make sure we get this deal over the line."
Ahead of the summit, the UK and EU have agreed a draft deal on removing post-Brexit checks on food and agriculture exports, with similar texts for deals on emissions trading and a youth travel and work scheme circulated to EU nations. The government claims the agreement will eventually bring the UK economy 5.1 billion pounds in annual benefits. Sources in the EU told The Times the two sides were "very close on all elements" of the agreements.
The new poll from Queen's University Belfast, conducted by LucidTalk between October 23 and 26 with a weighted sample of 1,050 participants, found that 52 percent of Northern Ireland electors agree the UK ought to rejoin the EU under standard member obligations, while 38 percent are opposed. Seventy-six percent of respondents would welcome an agreement at the summit to ease controls and checks on goods moving into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
The same research found support for the Windsor Framework continues to weaken, with 45 percent regarding it as "on balance a good thing for Northern Ireland" — its lowest level since June 2021 — and only 44 percent believing it is an appropriate means of managing the effects of Brexit, down from 60 percent in February 2024.
Burnham has argued that Brexit has done "more harm than good", but has ruled out major changes to the UK's relationship with the EU before the next general election, and has committed to Labour's 2024 manifesto pledge of no return to the single market, the customs union or freedom of movement. He has said he would like to see the UK return to the EU in his lifetime, and has pledged to set out his position on longer-term ties around the time of the summit.
The reset has drawn fire from opposition parties. The Conservatives have accused Labour of "dragging us into the European Union via the back door", and Conservative MP Dame Priti Patel said Burnham's "obsession with the EU risks dragging Britain backwards". The Liberal Democrats described the draft deal as a "patch, not a fix", while the Green Party has called for the UK to re-join the customs union.
