UK cannot "cherry pick" single market deal, says Michel Barnier | BBC Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg

The EU's former Brexit negotiator has warned that the UK cannot "cherry pick" which elements of the single market to which it subscribes, after Andy Burnham said he wanted to explore closer economic ties with Europe. The prime minister has said rejoining the bloc's internal market was among options he could pursue as part of a reshaping of ties since the UK's exit from the EU nearly six years ago. But Michel Barnier told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that EU members would insist on the UK readopting certain conditions, such as the free movement of people, to gain access. He said there was not a "single market à la carte" menu from which the UK could pick and choose what elements it wanted to adopt. Barnier - who led the EU delegation during Brexit talks between 2016 and 2021, and had a three-month spell as French prime minister in 2024 - said the "door is open" within Europe to the UK rejoining as an EU member. But he insisted that any move to rejoin the single market - which allows for goods to be freely traded without border controls - would require the UK to follow the same terms as other members. For the latest news download the BBC News app or visit BBC.com/news