Poll shows UK public favors closer EU ties but not full rulebook compliance

“The public now often looks to Europe for overseas alliances, particularly as the U.S. is increasingly perceived as at best unreliable and at worst adversarial,” said Seb Wride, head of polling at public research company Public First, which conducted the poll for POLITICO. “But it’s not straightforward for the government. ‘Getting closer with Europe’ is not the same as ‘reversing Brexit,’ and Burnham will have a challenging needle to thread to appease his pro-European wings without reopening wounds the public would prefer stayed closed.”

The Brexit referendum a decade ago divided the country, cost two prime ministers their jobs and triggered often bad-tempered divorce negotiations between London and Brussels that took years to complete.

Public First asked respondents for their views on moving the country closer to the EU and accepting EU rules. Some 31% said Britain should build a “closer” relationship with Brussels, but only if it did not mean complying with the EU’s rulebook. But 39% wanted “much closer” cooperation even if that did require the U.K. to follow some EU rules again.

The poll also confirms how the Brexit debate has carved the country into two blocs — pro and anti. Supporters of parties on the left were far more likely to back a closer EU relationship than those on the right. Green Party voters were the keenest of all: 64% said they’d support much closer EU ties even if that meant applying more EU rules. Older voters were less keen on closer ties to Brussels.

Among Reform UK voters, 51% said they want a closer relationship — twice the 25% who want more distance from the EU. That poses a potential challenge for party leader Farage, a career Euroskeptic. The finding could also provide ammunition for Labour politicians who want Burnham to be more ambitious about his plans to upgrade the U.K.-EU relationship, potentially including a return to the bloc’s customs union, single market or even full EU membership again.

As Burnham prepared to deliver his Tuesday speech to party members and activists in Liverpool, a succession of ministers and others gave their views about what kind of closer relationship with the EU he should pursue.