Barnier: UK Must Accept Free Movement to Rejoin Single Market

Michel Barnier stated that the United Kingdom cannot select only favorable aspects of the EU single market if it seeks reintegration. The former French prime minister and Brexit negotiator told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that EU members would require Britain to readopt specific conditions in exchange for access.

He specified that these conditions include the free movement of people. Barnier emphasized that the four freedoms, covering the movement of goods, services, capital, and people, are the mandatory terms for membership. He noted there is no possibility of retaining one freedom while excluding another.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has suggested that rejoining the bloc's internal market is a potential option as part of reshaping relations since the UK's exit nearly six years ago. Barnier added that the door is open for the UK to rejoin as a full member, though the process would require accepting the same terms as other members.

Since taking office in July, Burnham has indicated he could commit Labour to pursuing a much closer relationship with Europe. His predecessors have struck a series of agreements with Brussels on different aspects of the post-Brexit relationship. Both sides hope to use a summit in Brussels in 10 days to unveil deals on food standards, youth visas, and re-linking British industry to the EU's carbon trading regime.

The issue of free movement was central to the 2016 referendum. Sir Keir Starmer ruled out restoring it in Labour's 2024 manifesto, making it a dividing line with the Conservatives and Reform UK at a future election. Burnham recently said he would not bring back free movement without a referendum, prompting Downing Street to clarify he was not proposing its return at this point.

Barnier also predicted that EU countries would reject restoring the British financial rebate, which was first negotiated in 1985. He argued that Brexit created a new situation, meaning a new rebate is off the table. The rebate had previously lowered UK contributions to the bloc's budget.

In a comparison drawn between political figures, Barnier likened Reform UK leader Nigel Farage to Marine Le Pen. He described both as exhibiting the same populism and false promises. Barnier pointed to the Vote Leave campaign's claim that Britain sent 350 million pounds a week to the EU, calling the figure a lie.

The 350 million pound figure displayed on the Vote Leave campaign bus represented a gross contribution that ignored the UK's rebate of about 75 million pounds a week and EU investment in Britain. Boris Johnson defended the number in his 2024 memoirs, arguing that even a net figure of 175 million pounds was a hell of a lot of money. Farage, who led Leave UK and was not part of Vote Leave, responded by calling Barnier arrogant, out of touch, and a bully.