Rejoining EU would cost £750m a week, new campaign claims as Andy Burnham cozies up to Brussels

Detailed summary

The group, Stay Out, blames Brussels' spiralling budget, a doubling of its borrowing costs and no chance of recovering the UK's special rebate.

Published: 11:48 GMT, 14 November 2026 | Updated: 11:50 GMT, 14 November 2026

The bill for Britain to re-join the EU would be a staggering £750 million a week, according to a campaign group launched by former Brexit leaders.

The group, Stay Out, blames Brussels' spiralling budget, a doubling of its borrowing costs and no chance of recovering the UK's special rebate negotiated by former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

The cost warning has echoes of Vote Leave's controversial campaign bus slogan, suggesting £350 million per week could be clawed back from the EU and spent on the NHS.

Remainers rubbished that claim on the basis that it overlooked both the Thatcher rebate and EU funds spent in the UK.

Stay Out's intervention comes ahead of PM Andy Burnham's Brussels visit next week, during which he will sign a 'reset deal' with Europe.

The group claimed it would trigger a £39.3 billion annual bill for British taxpayers for two reasons in addition to the loss of the rebate, which former EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said is 'off the table'.

First, the EU's budget is expected to almost double to £1.8 trillion. The European Commission predicts that member states will need to contribute 1.26 per cent of gross national income in 2028 – up from 0.9 per cent in 2019.

Second, the cost of paying interest on the bloc's pandemic borrowing could hit £20.4 billion in 2028, up from £8.4 billion next year.

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