GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel has dashed any hope of Britain immediately securing a trade deal with the EU, after she said there had not been sufficient progress in the first phase of Brexit talks.
Speaking as Europe’s leaders gathered in Brussels for a summit, Merkel did say there had been some “encouraging” movement from Britain, but December would be the earliest trade talks could start.
It will not come as a huge surprise to the Prime Minister and her Cabinet.
May’s attempt last weekend to woo European leaders to ignore the advice of their chief negotiator Michel Barnier and start trade agreement discussions was largely rebuffed.
Merkel said: “There has been progress. Michel Barnier will tell us more about that.
“From where we are now, it is not sufficient enough to enter the second phase, but it is encouraging to move on with the work so that we can reach the second phase in December.”
She added: “I want to keep on doing these negotiations in good spirit and at the same time taking into account and respecting the wish of the British people to leave the EU but also maintaining a good relationship between Great Britain and the EU.”
The slow progress is largely down to a lack of agreement on how much the UK should pay Brussels, concerns over the rights of EU citizens living in Britain, and the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland.
May, addressing the other leaders at a dinner late last night, wasn’t expected to make any big new proposal, but rather just underline the £20 billion financial offer made in her speech in Florence.
As she arrived in Brussels, the Prime Minister said: “We’ll also be looking at the concrete progress that has been made in our exit negotiations and setting out ambitious plans for the weeks ahead. I particularly, for example, want to see an urgency in reaching an agreement on citizens’ rights.”
Before leaving for Brussels, May used a Facebook post to offer further assurances to the three million EU nationals in the UK.
In the open letter, which was also posted out to 100,000 EU nationals, May said the future of British and EU nationals has always been her “first priority”.
The Prime Minister said she was committed to putting “people first” in the negotiations and expected British nationals living on the continent to be treated in the same way.
“I know both sides will consider each other’s proposals with an open mind and with flexibility and creativity on both sides, I am confident we can conclude discussions on citizens’ rights in the coming weeks.”
Nicolas Hatton, chair of pressure group the3million which represents EU citizens living in the UK, said the May’s statement was “very positive”, if a little late: “We should have received that letter maybe 12 months ago so we would not have felt so anxious about our future.”
Luxembourg’s prime minister Xavier Bettel welcomed the post.
“We were friends, we are friends and we still will be friends. I am sure we will find an agreement.”
He added: “Times change and even Theresa May’s Facebook post went in the right direction.”
Meanwhile, a group of pro-Brexit Tory and Labour politicians – including former Chancellor Lord Lawson, former minister Owen Paterson, Labour MP Kate Hoey, and Wetherspoons boss Tim Martin – have sent a letter to Downing Street, urging the Prime Minister to call the EU’s bluff and just walk away.
In the letter, the prominent Brexiteers say the government “has been more than patient” and walking away now would give the UK time to prepare for a “no deal scenario”.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who addressed an audience of European Socialists in Brussels, which included a number of EU leaders scoping out May’s possible successor, labelled May’s letter a “weak message from a weak Prime Minister”.
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