Andy Burnham says it is clear Russia interfered in Brexit referendum

PM says he asked question upon entering No 10 but does not reveal who gave him ‘clear answer’ that Russia meddled

Andy Burnham has said it is clear Russia interfered in the Brexit referendum, after seeking answers on the Kremlin’s involvement in the 2016 vote when he entered Downing Street.

Speaking on the podcast The Rest is Politics, Burnham said: “I asked the question coming to Downing Street: well, was there interference in the 2016 referendum from Russia? I’ve had the clear answer that yes, there was.”

Burnham did not disclose who had given him the assessment, what evidence it was based on or whether any interference had affected the result of the vote.

The cross-party committee found that ministers had failed to seek a full assessment of Moscow’s activities, despite evidence of attempts to influence British politics through Russian state-backed media outlets and social media accounts.

The committee also said that whether a hostile state had sought to influence a democratic process was important regardless of whether those efforts had succeeded.

Last month the prime minister attacked Russian information warfare during a speech to the UN general assembly, saying there was evidence Moscow had tried to interfere with the 2019 general election.

“I think we’ve been too much on the back foot on that, actually, and we haven’t informed people sufficiently about the extent to which people are seeking to disrupt the political process from overseas.”

“One thing I did say to Chancellor Merz … is we need to support you in taking on the threat that you face and particularly the type of politics that you’re facing,” he said. “You know, he was saying to me that the AfD are clearly linked to Russia – funded, I believe.”

Last month Burnham opened the door to Britain eventually rejoining the EU, saying his government would examine all options for the country’s future relationship with Brussels.