Burnham says Russia interfered in 2016 Brexit vote, Downing Street says result stands

What Burnham said

Andy Burnham, who took over as British prime minister in July, said Russia interfered in the 2016 Brexit referendum. He made the claim in an interview with The Rest Is Politics podcast, published on Sunday, 11 October, and Reuters described it as the first time a British prime minister had openly said there was evidence of Russian interference in the vote. Burnham said he had asked the question on arriving in Downing Street and had received a clear answer.

I asked the question coming to Downing Street, was there interference in the 2016 referendum from Russia? And I've had the clear answer that yes, there was.

Burnham did not explain how Russia had interfered, what Moscow had done, or what evidence supported his statement. The Russian embassy in London did not respond to a Reuters request for comment, and Russia has previously denied meddling in the vote. Burnham had also said in September that Britain could consider rejoining the European Union in the future.

Downing Street and ministers respond

A Downing Street spokesman said it was "inconceivable" that Russia did not try to use the referendum to its advantage, but that the prime minister believed it did not succeed in influencing the result. Pressed several times on Monday, 12 October, the spokesman said the government believed the referendum result "was legitimate" and that the prime minister "absolutely accepts the referendum result". Minister Stephen Doughty told Sky News that Russia "haven't succeeded" in interfering, and he told broadcasters that Russia had been "attempting to interfere in a series of democratic events" without giving specifics on the vote.

Claims about Germany and France

Burnham said he discussed Russian involvement in European elections with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a visit to Berlin earlier in October. According to Burnham, Merz told him the far-right Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) was clearly linked to Russia and, to his knowledge, received funding from Moscow. Burnham gave no independent evidence of that funding, as tagesschau reported. In the podcast he said there was "certainly misinformation, disinformation that is emanating from Russia into German politics".

I mean, these things are important now to put clearly on the record, and I believe, help voters in Germany and France understand that some of this politics is instigated via our enemies, namely Russia.

De Morgen noted that France holds presidential elections in 2027 and Germany parliamentary elections in 2029, the votes Burnham's warning is aimed at.

Political reaction

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader and a prominent Brexit campaigner, rejected the claim in strong terms.

The prime minister is a liar, yes, a liar.

Farage also said there was no Russian interference and that the Russian hoax had run through the whole debate, calling Burnham out-of-touch with "all sorts of bizarre ideas". The Conservatives said Burnham had been "at best... carelessly vague", and shadow minister Katie Lam said he "risks sowing doubt about the result of a professionally-run, independently-monitored democratic vote". Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey backed the statement, saying it had taken courage after years in which the Conservatives suppressed the truth. Britain Unbound, a Brexit campaign group, said there was no good reason to assume Russian interference affected the 2016 result.

Background from the 2020 report

The 52% to 48% vote to leave the EU plunged Britain into what Reuters described as its biggest political crisis since World War Two. A 2020 report by parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee concluded that the UK was one of Russia's most important Western intelligence targets, but it did not accuse Moscow of interfering in the referendum, according to De Morgen. The committee criticised successive governments for failing to fully assess or counter the threat. Under Boris Johnson, who campaigned to leave the EU, the government said in response that it had seen no evidence of successful interference in the referendum. Burnham's comments depart from that position.