• Analysis
Andy Burnham free movement EU row: Mahmood says Brexit cost UK control of migration
Amid the debate over Andy Burnham's free movement EU comments, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said on Monday that Britain lost control over migration after Brexit, with the loss of access to EU-wide databases affecting the ability to manage migration, as she introduced sweeping changes to migration rules in parliament.
Mahmood: losing EU databases hurt migration control
The comments from Andy Burnham on free movement and the EU have put the Brexit settlement back in the frame, and the Home Secretary's assessment of it is blunt. Leaving the EU weakened the government's grip on the border, she said, not strengthened it. Losing access to EU-wide databases, she said, had a very significant impact on the UK and its ability to manage migration into the country.
Her remarks came as she assessed the Brexit settlement itself. Ten years on from Brexit, she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme, it is right that the country has an open discussion about the terms on which it left.
Mahmood added that the prime minister recognised there were significant issues with the free movement of people, and that this should also be part of the national debate on the Brexit settlement.
Manifesto line on free movement stands
The admission does not come with a policy change attached. Mahmood said she wanted to abide by Labour's manifesto, which ruled out free movement, and would not indulge the speculation that has followed Burnham's remarks.
She was explicit that the commitment holds for the life of this parliament:
We had a manifesto commitment not to reopen in this parliament the question of freedom of movement, and that will not change in this parliament
The manifesto red lines Burnham has said he is committed to for this parliament rule out a return to the customs union, single market or free movement. Burnham himself has denied proposing a return of free movement in talks between the UK and EU, saying any decision on the future relationship will be led by the will of the British people.
Sweeping rule changes tabled in parliament
The Home Secretary delivered her assessment on the same day she brought forward a package of measures in the Commons. Mahmood introduced sweeping changes to migration rules in parliament on Monday.
Immigration minister Anna Turley set out where she wants the system to go, naming her priorities as:
- •sorting out the existing system and making sure it is not chaotic
- •getting young people in her constituency into work
- •stopping small boats
- •getting a grip on removals
Where the UK-EU relationship goes next
Any wider change to the Brexit settlement sits behind the deal the prime minister has outlined. He said the November EU summit would cement a deal on food and drink and emissions trading, as well as a youth mobility deal, after which talks would move to a long-term stable deal with all options on the table.
A draft text circulated among the 27 EU members suggests a final deal is close. Mahmood's rule changes were introduced in parliament on Monday, with the manifesto commitment on freedom of movement unchanged for this parliament.
