Andy Burnham has accused the Conservatives of giving Britain "a harsher and harder Brexit" than voters expected, telling Welsh Labour's conference on Saturday that the party "burned all of our bridges" with the European Union.
The Prime Minister made the attack in Llandudno six days before a UK-EU summit in Brussels on 20 November, where he hopes to secure agreements on food and farming, emissions trading and youth mobility. It sharpens Labour's line against the Tories at a time when his own openness to rejoining the EU has drawn criticism from opponents.
Burnham told delegates at Venue Cymru: "And actually, I think the Conservatives gave Britain a harsher and harder Brexit than people thought they were getting when they voted in 2016, because they burned all of our bridges in the aftermath with the EU."
He also said the UK had "lost more than we've gained over the last 10 years", a reference to the decade since the 2016 referendum.
The Prime Minister tied the argument to the coming talks and to Welsh producers. He said: "And I'm going to go and try and get the best deal I can for Wales, for those here who could benefit, Welsh farmers, exporters of Welsh shellfish and Welsh lamb."
Burnham said the right deal would cut red tape for food exporters, bring food prices down, reduce costs for businesses and add "up to 0.4% on GDP". The reported remarks give no time period, baseline or source for that figure.
"It's why, in a few days' time, I will head to the next UK-EU summit and I will be working hard as we move towards it to get to a new deal on food and farming between the UK and the EU," he said.
The BBC has reported that the UK and EU have agreed a draft deal to remove post-Brexit checks on food and agricultural exports. Burnham is due to meet the European Council president, António Costa, and the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, at the summit.
The Conservatives have attacked the Prime Minister's approach to Europe in the run-up to the meeting. On Thursday, two days before the speech, the Conservative MP Dame Priti Patel said: "Andy Burnham's obsession with the EU risks dragging Britain backwards, damaging our economy and leaving hardworking British taxpayers footing the bill."
Reform UK's deputy leader, Richard Tice, said in September that Burnham was "trying to sneak us back into Brussels via the back door".
The Prime Minister has criticised Brexit before. He said at Labour's conference in Liverpool on 29 September that Brexit had done "more harm than good", and told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the following day that the options included a customs union, the single market "or we could go all the way".
He has since ruled out major changes to the UK-EU relationship before the next general election, according to the BBC. In an ITV interview reported earlier this month he said: "I will not run ahead of public opinion. The public need to be the boss when it comes to whatever happens with Brexit."
The BBC has reported that the push for closer ties is "dividing his cabinet and his party".
Brexit formed a short passage in a speech mainly about Welsh Labour's recovery. The party fell to third place in May's Senedd election and no longer leads the Welsh government. Burnham, who became Prime Minister in July, spoke at a conference where the Welsh Secretary, Stephen Kinnock, was also due to speak.
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