This week a new campaign, Stay Out, entered the long argument over Britain's place in Europe, timed to land just ahead of a UK-EU summit where Prime Minister Andy Burnham is expected to sign agreements on food, energy and youth mobility. Its case is that the country has spent enough years arguing about Europe and should turn its attention to its own priorities, a weariness that many in public life have come to share. Burnham, for his part, has called Brexit more harmful than good yet has ruled out major changes before the next election, leaving the question of Britain's long-term course delibe
New 'Stay Out' campaign launches against EU rejoining ahead of Burnham's UK-EU summit
The country has had enough of arguing about Europe
Mark
Why does the launch date matter so much here?
Mimi
Because it's pegged to the summit on 20 November. Burnham is expected to sign deals on food, energy and youth mobility, and Stay Out wants its argument in the air before he does.
Mark
Who is behind the group?
Mimi
Oliver Lewis chairs it. He worked for Vote Leave and was deputy chief negotiator for the UK government in trade talks with the EU. Lord Gove, who chaired Vote Leave in 2016, has lent his support.
Luke
Let's be careful about the headline number. £39.3bn a year, or £750m a week, is the group's own calculation.
Mimi
Yes, and BBC News says it hasn't independently verified it.
Luke
So we can say the campaign claims it, not that it's the likely cost. We also don't have the assumptions behind it from this reporting.
Mark
Is Burnham actually proposing to rejoin?
Mimi
Not at the moment. He says Brexit has done more harm than good, but he's ruled out major changes to the relationship before the next general election.
Luke
And his September answer was open-ended. He said he wanted to look at the options and that he'd once favoured rejoining in his lifetime, though that's not necessarily the case now. That's not a plan.
Mark
So what is the campaign really arguing against?
Mimi
A future possibility more than a current policy. Gove says reopening Brexit would mean another decade of fractious negotiations.
Luke
Which is a prediction, and an argument from people who campaigned to leave. Worth remembering when weighing it.
The Pulse
- A new campaign has dropped into the debate just days before the UK-EU summit, sharpening an already tense moment.
- Stay Out, chaired by Oliver Lewis, argues that rejoining would be costly and divisive, and it has drawn in Vote Leave figures to lend weight to the message.
- The campaign claims rejoining would cost £39.3bn a year, or £750m a week, a figure the BBC has not independently verified.
- Prime Minister Burnham is moving toward narrower deals on food, energy and youth mobility on 20 November, while ruling out major relationship changes before the next election.
This week a new campaign, Stay Out, entered the long argument over Britain's place in Europe, timed to land just ahead of a UK-EU summit where Prime Minister Andy Burnham is expected to sign agreements on food, energy and youth mobility. Its case is that the country has spent enough years arguing about Europe and should turn its attention to its own priorities, a weariness that many in public life have come to share. Burnham, for his part, has called Brexit more harmful than good yet has ruled out major changes before the next election, leaving the question of Britain's long-term course deliberately open. The campaign's cost claims remain its own, not yet confirmed by independent scrutiny.
A new campaign against the UK rejoining the European Union was launched this week, timed to land just before Prime Minister Andy Burnham meets European leaders. It is called Stay Out, and its message is simple: Britain should stop arguing about Europe and get on with other business.
The timing is deliberate. Burnham is expected to sign new agreements with the EU on food, energy and youth mobility at a summit on 20 November, and he has spoken of a "win-win" deal and closer ties with the bloc. Stay Out is chaired by Oliver Lewis, who worked for Vote Leave and later as deputy chief negotiator in UK trade talks with the EU. He says the country has had enough and should spend its money on its own priorities. The campaign has also won the backing of Lord Gove, who warned that reopening Brexit would mean another decade of fractious negotiations and a higher price for membership.
The group's central argument is cost. It claims rejoining would bring a bill of £39.3bn a year, or £750m a week. The BBC has not independently verified those calculations, so the figure remains the campaign's claim.
Burnham's position is more cautious than either side might like. He has said Brexit has done "more harm than good", yet he has ruled out major changes before the next general election and wants to weigh the pros and cons of Britain's long-term options. Asked in September whether he wanted rejoining, he said he wanted to "look at the options", adding that it was "not necessarily the case" that he still wanted it.
The 20 November summit will show how far the government is willing to go with narrower agreements. Stay Out says it will be watching, and insists that any step toward rejoining carries a cost for taxpayers.
A new campaign against the UK rejoining the European Union was launched this week, timed to land just before Prime Minister Andy Burnham sits down with European leaders. It is called Stay Out, and its message is that Britain should stop arguing about Europe and get on with other business.
The timing is deliberate. Burnham is expected to sign new agreements with the EU on food, energy and youth mobility at a UK-EU summit on 20 November. He has described the approach as one in which a "win-win" deal can be struck, and he is exploring closer ties with the bloc.
Stay Out is chaired by Oliver Lewis, who worked for Vote Leave and later served as deputy chief negotiator for the UK government in trade negotiations with the EU. Lewis said the country has had enough of arguing about Europe, and that it is time to move on and spend its money on its own priorities.
The campaign has also won the backing of Lord Gove, who chaired the Vote Leave campaign during the 2016 referendum. Gove warned that reopening the Brexit question would commit the country to another decade of fractious negotiations. In his words, rejoining would mean handing back control of laws, borders, money and trade, and paying a good deal more for membership than before. He added that people are desperate for Westminster to get on with delivering on their priorities.
The group's central argument is about cost. Alongside the launch, it published its own analysis claiming that rejoining the EU would cost the UK £39.3bn a year in contributions, or £750m a week. BBC News has not independently verified those calculations, so the figure stands as the campaign's claim rather than an established number.
Burnham's own position is more cautious than either camp might like to pin down. He has argued that Brexit has done "more harm than good", but he has ruled out major changes to the UK's relationship with the EU before the next general election. He says he wants to examine the "pros and cons" of the options for Britain's long-term relationship with the bloc.
He was pressed on the question directly in September, when he was asked whether he wanted the UK to rejoin. He answered that he wanted to "look at the options". The prime minister also said he had previously advocated such a move within his lifetime, while acknowledging it was "not necessarily the case that that is now".
The summit on 20 November will show how far the government intends to go with the narrower agreements on food, energy and youth mobility. Stay Out has made clear it will be watching, and arguing that any step toward rejoining carries a price for taxpayers.
Notable Quotes
Rejoining would mean handing back control of our laws, borders, money and trade, and paying a good deal more for membership than we did before.— Lord Gove
The country has had enough of arguing about Europe, and it is time to move on and spend our money on our own priorities.— Oliver Lewis, chair of Stay Out
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