Andy Burnham is set to end one of the most damaging consequences of Brexit by agreeing to align to European Union standards on food and drink in a bid to end border checks.
It will mean that UK exports to the EU of fresh sausages, burgers, shellfish from domestic waters and seed potatoes can resume, according to the BBC.
The deal, reportedly set to be signed at the end of this month, will also allow passports for UK pets taken into the EU to resume for the first time since the UK left the bloc.
But it comes as Mr Burnham appeared to backtrack on his hopes to bring back free movement of people instead saying it would be part of “an honest” discussion on Britain’s relationship with the EU as he considers future options.
The expected deal on border checks comes amid concerns over the impact the planned new digital system will have on fresh goods.
Full implementation of the system has been previously delayed with problems of fresh fruit and vegetables as well as meat still being held up at the border.
Added to that, much UK produce has had to carry a “not for sale in the EU” sticker.
Farmers and other fresh goods producers have been pushing for a deal which would end the checks and allow goods to move again.
It has been a major factor behind 70,000 businesses in the UK no longer trading with the EU because of the additional red tape.
But the deal will mean that the UK has to align itself with EU rules and standards in a major concession by the government unpicking Boris Johnson’s deal.
Pro-EU campaigners will be hoping that it is a precursor to an election manifesto promise to either rejoin the EU fully or at least join the single market or customs union.
However, while UK rules remain mostly aligned with EU ones, there are some areas where England has moved away from the EU rule book.
This includes "precision breeding" of plants, previously known as gene editing.
But the expected move comes as Mr Burnham pulls away from rapidly undoing another problematic part of leaving the EU by delaying any attempts to bring back freedom of movement.
In recent weeks he had suggested that he wanted to bring freedom of movement back but faced a backlash from Labour MPs in red wall seats nervous about Nigel Farage’s Reform UK and splits in his own cabinet on the issue.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood is understood to be critical of the idea.
In an interview with ITV airing on Tuesday, the Labour leader said: “I have not proposed freedom of movement coming back.
“I do believe that we should have an honest discussion with people about how immigration has changed since the Brexit vote because the shorter term migration of people coming from Europe and then going back has been replaced with long term settlement in bigger numbers, and that was the Boriswave.”
He said this had “led to more illegal migration because we can’t share data anymore” with European partners.
Mr Burnham, who fought a by-election in Leave-voting Makerfield that served as a stepping stone into No 10 with a promise not to “re-run” Brexit arguments, said he had noticed during the campaign that public opinion had changed in the constituency over the decade since the 2016 Brexit vote.
He continued: “I think public opinion has changed nationally.
“But I want to be really clear on this issue. I will not run ahead of public opinion. The public needs to be the boss when it comes to whatever happens with Brexit.”
Mr Burnham was pressed again on the issue after an interview, last weekend, in which he called for an “honest discussion” about a return to freedom of movement prompted questions about how close the UK could become to Brussels.
Confusion deepened after further interviews, in which he first said there would be no shift within this Parliament and signalled that he could fight the next general election on a promise to take the UK back into the bloc.
In a second interview, he said “no” when asked whether he would allow the UK to reinstate EU freedom of movement without a referendum, forcing Downing Street to later clarify that he was “not leaning either way” on how to move forward.
Mr Burnham told MPs in the Commons last week there was “no confusion at all” about his position when asked if he wanted a referendum on rejoining the bloc.
He committed to sticking to red lines set out in Labour’s manifesto – which rule out returning to the customs union, single market or free movement – for the duration of this Parliament.
He also told his cabinet to avoid publicly backing specific options for the UK’s future relationship with the EU in a letter seeking to clarify his stance.
