Sir Tony Blair has urged Labour to rejoin the European Union within a decade and overturn the votes of millions of Britons.
The former Prime Minister’s think tank has said the UK needs a “new approach” to post-Brexit relations.
Sir Tony, who left office in 2007, said Andy Burnham’s Government should enter a “structured formal relationship” where “everything is on the table”, adding that Canada’s invitation to become an associate member showed a “newfound flexibility” in relations between the EU and non-member states.
But the former Labour leader cautioned against a return to a straight membership of the single market and customs union, and warned against an “inching towards” Europe as a result of public opinion in a slight to Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership.
Mr Burnham, meanwhile, declined to rule out committing to rejoining the EU in Labour’s next manifesto, saying it was an issue “for another day”.
The report argues Britain rejoining a “significantly reformed” EU could form a superpower that could challenge the US and China.
It reads: “Britain should play a leading role in shaping a more powerful Europe. The necessary reforms have already been identified – not least in Mario Draghi’s report on EU competitiveness – but implementing them remains the challenge.
“For Britain to be part of that effort, it must show political commitment to Europe. This can be achieved by setting a clear, public objective to rejoin the EU within a decade – subject to internal EU reform.”
Sir Tony Blair said he should make it clear the UK should establish a ‘formal relationship with the EU’
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The think tank insists Britain should not rejoin the current EU, but instead urges Mr Burnham’s Government to collaborate with the bloc to reform it.
Author of the report, TBI’s Director, Tone Langengen, said: “We are not saying Britain should rejoin without a referendum, and we do not argue that in our paper.
“Our position is clear – Britain shouldn’t rejoin the EU as it is. We’ve set out a future ambition to rejoin that’s conditional on Britain and Europe both getting stronger first, then on the EU being reformed.
“Nor are we making an argument about the eurozone.”
In a foreword to the report entitled “Beyond Leave and Remain: A Path to Rejoining a Reformed Europe”, Sir Tony said: “The red lines which we drew in 2016 are not the same as 2026.
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Sir Tony Blair said the invitation to become an associate member of Canada showed a ‘newfound flexibility’ in the EU
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“We need a new approach which makes sense of the world as it has changed in this decade, and which treats our future relationship in Europe not as a question about whether Britain ‘reverses’ Brexit but about whether we can secure a modern relationship with Europe which is in our national interest today.”
He added: “There is no point in inching towards Europe as we feel what British public opinion might accommodate. We should be clear that we want back into a formal relationship with the EU. But it must be a Europe on a credible path to reform, a Europe of nation states, a Europe capable of being a genuine global power.”
Sir Tony suggested the UK should continue to “co-operate with the EU where it is in our mutual interest to do so” while showing it is prepared to remain independent.
The report recommends London and Brussels work together on issues including AI, cyber-resilience, defence and energy.
Britain should be careful not to join a Europe which is “pursuing the wrong policies in areas like technology innovation” and unwilling to make “vital reforms” for Europe’s future, the former Prime Minister added in his foreword.
Andy Burnham declined to rule out to commit to rejoining the EU as he met Ursula von der Leyen at the UN General Assembly
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Proposed EU-UK collaboration points include the development of the North Sea as a “strategic energy basin” and a rebuilding of Europe’s nuclear ecosystem.
Tensions over the bloc’s Made In Europe scheme have delayed a planned summit between the EU and UK, originally set to be held in July before the resignation of Sir Keir.
Mr Burnham met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the UN General Assembly.
The Prime Minister told reporters he made the argument the UK was “not your enemies here… we are not the problem”.
The report added: “The politics that shaped the Brexit debate belong to a different strategic era. Today’s geopolitical reality demands a different approach: one focused not on institutional questions alone, but on how Europe builds the collective capability needed to compete and act strategically.”