British PM rules out rejoining EU in 'this parliament'

LONDON, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Andy Burnham ruled out Britain rejoining the EU in the current parliament in an interview broadcast on Monday by British media.

Andy Burnham at the Chancellery in Berlin earlier this month (Photo: AFP)

When asked whether he wants Britain to rejoin the EU, Burnham said he wants to see that happen in his lifetime, but he is "not proposing rejoining in this parliament."

"We are way away from that at this particular moment in time," he said.

Burnham said the "decade of experience" since Brexit has not "played out as people said it would at the time."

Brexit weakened Britain's economy and control of immigration, said Burnham, adding that the crisis of small boat crossings by illegal immigrants has arisen since Brexit.

2026 marks a decade since the Brexit referendum in June 2016 when some 52 percent of the voters backed leaving the EU. Britain formally left the bloc in 2020.

Britain's Labor Party won a majority of seats in the House of Commons in the 2024 general election. Unless an early general election is called, the current parliament is expected to run for five years.