# Burnham confirms Russia interfered with Brexit vote

> The prime minister says Moscow meddled in the 2016 referendum, raising questions about the result's legitimacy.
- Title: Burnham confirms Russia interfered with Brexit vote | Shortify
- Summary: The prime minister says Moscow meddled in the 2016 referendum, raising questions about the result's legitimacy. Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirmed Russia…
- Keywords: andy burnham, russia, brexit, 2016 referendum, election interference, uk politics, disinformation, politics, news, Burnham, confirms, interfered
- Source: The Independent — https://independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/russia-brexit-interference-andy-burnham-b3065121.html
- Published: 2026-10-12T10:23:59+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: andy burnham, russia, brexit, 2016 referendum, election interference, uk politics, disinformation, politics, news
## Burnham breaks silence on Russian meddling
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has become the first prime minister to confirm Russia interfered with the 2016 Brexit referendum, revealing he asked about it upon arriving at Downing Street this summer.

> And I've had the clear answer that yes, there was.
## Burnham says UK too passive on Russian threats
The prime minister told The Rest Is Politics podcast the UK and its allies had been too much on the back foot when confronting Russian interference and haven't informed people sufficiently about overseas disruption.

> haven't informed people sufficiently about the extent to which people are seeking to disrupt the political process from overseas
## Intelligence committee found assessment failures
Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee found in twenty twenty that the government failed to fully assess the impact Russian state-run media and troll accounts could have had on the EU referendum.
## Foreign Office won't detail interference specifics
Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty declined to provide details of what form Russian interference took in twenty sixteen and whether it had been successful, citing security concerns.

> I'm not going to get into the specifics of Russia's actions against the UK, but what is clear is that Russia is attempting to interfere in democratic processes, not just in the UK but across Europe.
## Russia spending one point five billion on disinformation
Stephen Doughty said Russia was spending one point five billion pounds on disinformation this year and called for a whole of society effort to respond to the threat Moscow poses to British democracy.
## Doughty: attempts did not change the result
Stephen Doughty told LBC he did not think Russia's attempts to interfere in the referendum had been successful, saying the security minister had previously confirmed they attempted but not succeeded.

> I don't think they've succeeded in their efforts to undermine our elections
## Pro-EU campaigners call for membership restoration
Pro-EU campaigners have called for Britain to restore its EU membership in light of the revelation, saying it is important to have public confirmation of suspected interference.

> We have suspected for years that the 2016 referendum could have been subjected to interference because of how its result helped destabilise a united Europe
## Best for Britain urges EU membership as remedy
Naomi Smith, chief executive of Best for Britain, said restoring EU membership and putting the UK back at the heart of Europe as soon as possible is the only option to repair the damage.

> there is only one option on the table that could begin to repair that damage, and it's restoring our EU membership and putting the UK back at the heart of Europe, as soon as possible.
## Key takeaway

Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirmed Russia interfered with the 2016 Brexit referendum, prompting calls to reassess the vote's validity.