Barnier says UK could rejoin EU without euro, but demands free movement anyway
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Michel Barnier, the European Union's former chief Brexit negotiator, has floated the idea that the United Kingdom could talk about rejoining the bloc without being forced into the euro, yet he insists it must swallow the EU's four freedoms, including free movement of people. The message is the same old Brussels script: take the rules, take the migrants, and give up any real national control.
Michel Barnier, the European Union's former chief Brexit negotiator, told Sky News that the United Kingdom could begin talks to rejoin the bloc without being required to adopt the euro. He emphasized that while the single currency would not be a condition, joining the single market would be, which means accepting the free movement of people, goods, services and capital.
"As far as the freedom of movement is concerned, I can only repeat that the four freedoms are linked together and are not negotiable," Barnier said.
He added that there is no scope for "cherry-picking" or a "single market 'a la carte'" and that the UK already knows the conditions for re-entering the single market and customs union. In other words, Brussels is still demanding that Britain bend to rules written elsewhere, with little room for democratic self-government or a genuinely independent trade policy.
The comments follow remarks by UK Labour leader Andy Burnham, who denied proposing a return of free movement and said the public should decide any future relationship with the EU. Burnham has urged ministers to explore long-term options, and he has not excluded the possibility of including EU re-membership in Labour's next election manifesto.
Polling data cited by the Independent shows support for rejoining the EU at 61 percent, the highest level since the 2016 referendum, while a Stanford University professor estimated that the UK may have lost up to 8 percent of GDP due to Brexit-related trade disruptions.