The European Union has postponed a planned July 22 summit with the United Kingdom after outgoing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his resignation on June 22, with European Council President António Costa saying the meeting would need to be rescheduled pending the UK’s leadership transition.
The summit had been set to finalise a package of closer post-Brexit arrangements including electricity market integration, a youth mobility scheme and tighter security and defence cooperation. European Commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho confirmed Brussels was reassessing the summit’s timing in coordination with Costa and UK officials, while stressing that relations with the UK remained strong.
Frontrunner to succeed Starmer, Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, has indicated he supports closer EU ties, previously saying he hoped to see the UK rejoin the bloc within his lifetime, though he has since pledged not to reopen Brexit arguments. Campaign group Best For Britain commissioned economic analysis suggesting the UK would gain a £92 billion economic boost from steps toward EU reintegration. Burnham is expected to become prime minister around July 17 or 18 if no other leadership challenger emerges.
EU officials say a rescheduled summit is likely in late July or early August, with trade and defence as the central agenda items.
