Staggering cost of Burnham's EU reset: We'll be forced to adopt a new Brussels directive every 12 hours

Britain will be forced to adopt a new EU regulation every 12 hours under Andy Burnham's Brexit reset, a major study has found.

The report by a parliamentary committee warns the Prime Minister's plan to sign up to EU rules on food and farming will lead to an avalanche of new Brussels regulations in the UK.

The committee found that the deal – which is due to be signed off by Mr Burnham next week – is likely to require the UK to adopt 'at least 780 pieces of EU law' each year.

The staggering figure is equal to two new regulations every day.

And Britain's ability to influence the new laws it is forced to adopt is 'likely to be limited', the report warns.

It says that rose-tinted Treasury assessments of the deal have failed to take into account the cost to businesses of complying with a tidal wave of new regulations.

Rejoining the EU's electricity market, which the Prime Minister is also set to agree to next week, could even drive up energy bills in the UK, the report warns. 

Former Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay told the Daily Mail that Mr Burnham's plan would undermine his pledge to restore control to the public and break with the consensus of the past 40 years.

Britain will be forced to adopt a new EU regulation every 12 hours under Andy Burnham's Brexit reset, a major study has found

Britain will be forced to adopt a new EU regulation every 12 hours under Andy Burnham's Brexit reset, a major study has found 

After meetings with EU leaders in Dublin yesterday, Mr Burnham said a 'win-win' deal could be done that could be 'more like the Brexit that people thought they were voting for in 2016'

After meetings with EU leaders in Dublin yesterday, Mr Burnham said a 'win-win' deal could be done that could be 'more like the Brexit that people thought they were voting for in 2016'

He added: 'On a democratic level, Burnham's reset will mean the introduction of a whole lot of rules over which Parliament and the public have no control. 

'The Government appears to have no grasp of the detail or consequences of what it is doing. As a result, many of the claims it is making about the impact on growth simply do not stack up.'

Mark Francois, chairman of the European Research Group of Tory MPs, said the committee's findings laid bare the true cost of a Brexit reset. 

The former minister added: 'Dynamic alignment means signing up to automatically follow future EU regulations in this area, in perpetuity, regardless of the will of Parliament – and despite our country having already voted democratically to leave the EU.

'In other words, we would become a "rule-taker" again; and all because Labour are obsessed with rejoining the EU.'

Mr Burnham will fly to Brussels next week to sign a new 'reset' deal with the EU, which was originally negotiated by Sir Keir Starmer.

It will slash post-Brexit checks imposed by Brussels, which have made it difficult for British food producers to export to the bloc. 

In return, the Prime Minister will agree to permanently align with all EU regulations on food and farming. 

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Former Brexit secretary Steve Barclay told the Daily Mail that Mr Burnham's plan would undermine his pledge to restore control to the public and break with the consensus of the past 40 years

Former Brexit secretary Steve Barclay told the Daily Mail that Mr Burnham's plan would undermine his pledge to restore control to the public and break with the consensus of the past 40 years

The process, known as dynamic alignment, means the UK will have to adopt new EU regulations in the area as soon as they are passed by Brussels.

Mr Burnham is then expected to set out a range of options for Britain's future relations with the EU, including rejoining the single market or going back into the Brussels club.

Downing Street said on Thursday that Mr Burnham believed the current Brexit deal was 'not good enough' and was 'holding Britain back'. 

But his Cabinet is divided on the issue, with senior figures including Chancellor John Healey, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy all harbouring reservations.

After meetings with EU leaders in Dublin on Thursday, Mr Burnham said he believed a 'win-win' deal could be done with the EU that could be 'more like the Brexit that people thought they were voting for in 2016'.

He added: 'The requests are coming from the European side. We are putting our requests on the table, too. 

'I believe there is a good deal to be done that could be a win-win for Britain and Europe. It actually could be more like the Brexit people thought they were voting for in 2016.'

The report from the House of Lords' European affairs committee says a reset will trigger a 'fundamental change in the UK-EU relationship', with Britain submitting to EU laws on a widespread basis again for the first time since leaving in 2020.

Committee chairman Lord Stirrup said the deal would involve 'significant volumes of EU legislation', with the committee hearing evidence that complying with farming laws alone 'might generate at least 780 pieces of in-scope EU law a year'.

He added: 'This may sound like a technical issue, but the rules in question can affect everyday matters, from food standards and consumer prices to business costs and household budgets.' 

Shanker Singham, a former government trade adviser, warned that the flow of new EU laws resulting from the proposed deal would be 'relentless'. 

Some EU regulations could carry significant costs for business, including firms that do not export to the EU but who will be required to comply.

The Mail reported last week that Mr Burnham's deal will involve agreeing to implement planned EU laws that will ban the sale and marketing of vegetarian products with meat-inspired names, such as smoky bacon crisps.

Sir Keir had said the food and farming deal could add £5.1billion to GDP over ten years. 

Mr Burnham claimed last week that unpublished Treasury analysis suggested it could add £12billion.

But the new report says official analysis has failed to 'take account of compliance costs falling on firms that do not trade with the EU' – or considered the cost of missed opportunities from diverging from the EU.

The committee urged ministers to come clean on the cost to the taxpayer.

Ex-Tory minister Esther McVey said: 'Burnham's Brexit betrayal would force the overwhelming majority of small businesses that don't export to the EU to follow pointless bureaucratic regulations; and all to cover up the fact that Burnham has no idea how to grow the economy so intends to farm out the responsibility to someone else.

'I suggest Burnham starts listening to his constituents in Makerfield rather than just using them as a flag of convenience to fulfil his own personal ambitions.' 

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Original source Staggering cost of Burnham's EU reset: We'll be forced to adopt a new Brussels directive every 12 hours

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