The British prime minister confirmed a U.K.-EU summit will be held on Nov. 20 after sparking a row over Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit vote.

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LONDON — Andy Burnham said Monday it would be a “dereliction of duty” for Britain not to seek closer ties with the EU after reigniting a row over allegations of Russian meddling in Britain's vote to exit the bloc.

In a House of Commons statement reopening Britain's highly-charged Brexit debate, the prime minister said the vast majority of the public would back a closer relationship with the EU if it helps to control immigration and boost economic growth.

Announcing that a long-anticipated U.K.-EU summit will take place on Nov. 20., he said: "Sticking with the status quo is not good enough for Britain. Worse, it would be a major dereliction of duty to turn away. We need to take a calm, clear-eyed, rational look at the world as it is today to consider what is best for our country."

The U.K. prime minister appealed to MPs to back his plans for closer ties with Brussels after telling the Rest is Politics podcast in an interview aired over the weekend that it is “clear” Russia interfered in the 2016 Brexit referendum.

“I asked the question coming to Downing Street: ‘Was there interference in the 2016 referendum from Russia?’ And I’ve had the clear answer that yes, there was,” Burnham said.

At Labour's annual conference last month, Burnham said Britain's departure from the bloc had done more harm than good, and in subsequent interviews the PM said it's possible a future Labour manifesto could include a pledge to hold an “in-out” referendum on rejoining the EU.

Conservative Party Leader Kemi Badenoch accused Burnham of implying the referendum result was "illegitimate," but the Labour leader told MPs he had said "no such thing" in his podcast comments.

His spokesperson had earlier told reporters: "We do believe the referendum result to be legitimate."

Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage — one of the most high profile campaigners for Brexit in 2016 — said Burnham's Russian interference comment was "outrageous" and accused the prime minister of being a "liar."

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, another leading pro-Brexit campaigner, said in a post on X that the security services had told him in 2016 that there was "no evidence of any successful interference in the 2016 referendum, by Russia or any other power."

Dan Bloom and Emilio Casalicchio contributed reporting.

This developing story has been updated.

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