Andy Burnham says he wants 'closer relationship' with EU on Berlin trip

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Play Mute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently playing live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen As well as to confirm a series of defence and security partnerships, Andy Burnham's visit to Berlin was also an opportunity to firm up his desire to return Britain to the embrace of the EU - more from ITV News Reporter Chloe Keedy Andy Burnham said Germany and the UK are "stronger together" as he travelled to Berlin on Thursday for the launch of a new security partnership aimed at hybrid threats. The prime minister, also said that a "closer relationship" between the UK and the EU would help boost economic growth. Burnham said last week that leaving the European Union has harmed the British economy but said he would not rush towards any options for a future relationship with Brussels. The PM travelled to Berlin for talks with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz focused primarily on security, including the ratification of the UK-German Kensington Treaty. Signed in July last year, the treaty commits the two nations to deeper co-operation on science, technology, defence, security and growth. Andy Burnham, alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, review a guard of honour on arrival for talks at the Chancellery in Berlin Credit: Sean Gallup/PA In brief remarks to journalists, the Prime Minister also stressed the importance of countering hybrid attacks, saying it was something both countries were “facing on a regular basis”. Last month, the British Government summoned a senior Russian diplomat to protest over an “egregious and reckless attack” at Germany’s Leipzig airport, a major international freight hub used for providing support to Ukraine. A drone carrying explosives was found near Ukrainian cargo planes in August, but failed to explode and was subsequently defused. Investigators suspect a second drone collided with a cargo aircraft nearby and a third drone was reportedly found near the airport 10 days later. On Thursday, Burnham said: “It makes sense to face these threats together and to support each other in countering them, as well as countering interference in our democratic processes as well, and being stronger together when we face these threats.” Burnham and Merz later convened a UK-Germany regional growth forum, bringing together British and German chief executives and focused on unlocking investment, strengthening industrial partnership and ensuring that the benefits of growth are felt in communities across both countries. The Global Combat Air Programme aims to build a sixth generation stealth fighter aircraft, informally dubbed ‘Tempest’ Credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Merz said a new UK-Germany industrial tech corridor will help growing artificial intelligence companies bring their technology into large-scale industrial use. Addressing the wider relationship with Germany and Europe, Burnham said he was “committed to securing deeper co-operation” with the EU at a summit with the bloc “towards the end of the year”. He said: “We’ve had an excellent discussion today, and we will look to see if we can turn the summit into a good outcome for the EU, but also for the UK as well.” Speaking at the start of a regional growth roundtable, Merz said he was “personally extremely happy” that Burnham had reopened the question of Britain’s future relationship with the bloc. “From our German side, I can assure you that we will do anything we can do to bring the UK closer and closer back to Europe, to the European continent, to the European Union,” he said. Defence spending hike a sign ‘Europe can awaken from long slumber’, says Rubio Burnham says 'better to be closer' to Europe as he blames slow growth on Brexit Burnham said: “The time has come to think more seriously about growth, and obviously we know growth can come from that closer relationship. “We have a UK-EU summit in front of us before the end of the year and I think it is important that we can show that growth comes from co-operation, as I believe it can do, as well as facing joint challenges together.” He continued: “It feels to me that the world as it is, is bringing us closer together. It’s making us more closely aligned. “We already are very close partners, but UK and Germany becomes a more important axis as we go into the next next period.” In his speech to the Labour Party conference last month, Mr Burnham said Brexit had done “more harm than good” and left the door open for a bid to rejoin the EU, saying he would “set out the options” for relations with the bloc after the summit. The date for the summit remains uncertain after it was postponed from July owing to Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister. Andy Burnham and Friedrich Merz in Berlin Credit: Sean Gallup/PA Burnham also said the UK would be “open” to Germany joining the the Global Combat Air Programme (Gcap), and international coalition to build the next generation of fighter jets. Gcap, initially a pact between the UK, Italy and Japan to build a sixth generation fighter jet, welcomed Canada as an “observer nation” in July. Informally dubbed “Tempest”, the new jets will be equipped with technology including AI and next generation sensors, as western nations seek to maintain air superiority over threats from rival powers like Russia and China. The move does not guarantee that Germany will join the programme, but is an initial step with German ministers now examining potential co-operation. Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning. It comes just months after a Franco-German project to develop their own sixth-generation fighter collapsed when the two sides were unable to agree terms. Linus Terhorst, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said Germany joining Gcap could be a positive move, bringing the project more financing and introducing economies of scale. But he suggested German entry could “disrupt” the programme if Berlin took a “confident” approach to negotiations, demanding a significant say in the design of the aircraft and the share of the project given to German industry. He said: “There is always a risk of the project being taken back by a very confident approach to negotiations and a very German-specific set of capability requirements being brought in. It will have to be very carefully managed.” From Westminster to Washington DC - our political experts are across all the latest key talking points. Listen to the latest episode below...