Four in 10 Brexit backers want UK to strengthen defence ties with Europe, new poll shows

Four in 10 Brexit backers think Andy Burnham should strengthen defence ties with Europe, new polling a decade on from the EU referendum shows.

Overall, half of all voters want to prioritise stronger security links with European allies, while only a tiny number, one in 10, believe the UK should co-operate more with the US.

The findings, from pollsters Savanta, show that with an “aggressive Putin and an unpredictable Trump” undermining global security Mr Burnham cannot stick to Labour’s Brexit red lines, the Liberal Democrats, who commissioned the polling, said on the first day of their annual conference in Brighton.

Mr Burnham has vowed to honour Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to rule out rejoining the customs union and single market or allowing free movement of people, despite saying he wants to be “bolder” than his predecessor in resetting relations with the bloc.

But the Lib Dems said the policy is a “risk to our national security”.

The party has called for a new ‘growth and defence partnership’ with Europe, to both protect the continent in the face of Russian aggression and give a welcome boost to the UK’s economy.

It would include membership of the single market and a new security council, in a move that would help protect the UK’s border and boost British industry, supporting high-skilled jobs in areas like shipbuilding and aerospace, the party said.

Among those supporting prioritised defence links with European allies were 25 per cent of Reform UK voters, the poll found.

Lib Dem Europe spokesperson Al Pinkerton said: “Ambitiously rebuilding our defence and trade ties with Europe is the biggest step this government could take to turbocharge economic growth and bolster Britain’s defences.

“The public sees this clearly – yet Starmer stuck his head in the sand, and Burnham now risks becoming continuity-Keir.”

He called on No 10 to put a Growth and Defence Partnership “on the table, which includes a new UK-EU defence pact and the UK joining the single market. With an aggressive Putin and unpredictable Trump undermining global security, sticking to outdated red lines is no longer just timid; it is a risk to our national security”.

Mr Burnham is facing growing pressure over his decision to keep to Sir Keir’s red lines.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock said the new prime minister should not be “constrained” by them, adding that those who “love their country” will want to return to the European Union.

And earlier this month former Tory chancellor George Osborne told this publication that Britain’s economy had “fallen off a cliff” since Brexit and that rejoining the EU’s customs union would be the swiftest route to recovery.

It comes as polling guru professor Sir John Curtice told The Independent that support for rejoining the European Union was now at its highest level since the Brexit vote. But he warned political leaders needed to seize the opportunity or it will all come to nothing.

Savanta interviewed 2,376 UK adults between 4 and 7 September.

A government spokesperson said: “Europe faces the most dangerous security environment since the Cold War, and we are stepping up alongside our allies to build a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO.

“That is why we are building an ambitious, close relationship with the EU that will improve our security and unlock good growth in every postcode.”

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