Monday's walk-back

The mayor used Monday to draw a line under the speculation his own weekend interview had created. He ruled out rejoining the EU within this parliament, while indicating he could fight the next general election on a promise to take the UK back into the EU. He also ruled out an early general election on a manifesto change, telling GMB there is no election coming anytime soon.

That was Andy Burnham on Monday, leaving the door open to a future fight on a promise to fully rejoin the EU.

A 'no' on freedom of movement without a referendum

Hours later, Burnham told journalists a plain "no" when asked if he would allow the UK to join the EU freedom of movement scheme without a referendum. He said he would like to see Britain rejoin the EU in his lifetime but would not move ahead of the public, saying the British public must be "the bosses".

• •He noted that 65% of his constituents in Makerfield voted to leave the EU, when challenged on how they would feel about his discussions.
• •He said he had promised not to rerun the referendum and that the people of Makerfield will decide what happens in relation to Brexit: "I said we wouldn't rerun the referendum and that's not what I'm doing".
• •He also said the Brexit deal has "weakened our economy [and] weakened our control of immigration" and is not good enough for the country.

What Downing Street said

Downing Street clarified Burnham's stance after the prime minister said an "honest discussion" was needed on freedom of movement. A No10 spokesperson said the prime minister was not proposing a return to freedom of movement, or any particular option. The spokesperson said the prime minister wants to discuss what long-term relationship with Europe is best for Britain, is not leaning either way, and that it will be for the British public to decide.

On whether returning to freedom of movement would mean Britain losing control over legal migration, the spokesperson said Burnham was not setting out a concrete position either way but wants a conversation with the British public about the UK's long-term future with the EU. The government was not yet at the stage of confirming whether the public would decide on proposals to move closer to the EU, and the prime minister's current focus is on next month's summit and practical arrangements expected to add billions to the economy.

How the confusion began

Burnham fuelled speculation about a return to freedom of movement in an interview at the weekend, prompting questions about how close the UK could become to Brussels. In a Sunday Times interview, he indicated that staying out of free movement would no longer be a red line in discussions about moving the UK closer to the EU. Confusion deepened after further interviews were interpreted as leaving the door open to an eventual return to freedom of movement and another referendum.

Burnham will attend the UK-EU summit in Brussels on 20 November as he seeks a better deal with the bloc.