Why is there talk of a Brexit U-turn?

This Is Why · Apr 14, 2026 · 18m

A decade on, you might have thought Brexit was done and dusted – but our relationship with the European Union is still in flux.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is proposing a reset that could result in the UK signing up to EU rules without the need for a normal parliamentary vote, under what are known as Henry VIII powers.

But in pushing for closer ties with the continent, is he risking a return to rule-taking without any say in what those rules are? And what might this new relationship with Brussels look like?

Niall speaks to Professor Anand Menon, director at UK in a Changing Europe, about…