UK asks for transition deal after quitting EU
British Prime Minister Theresa May has called for a twoyear transition after Brexit, in which Britain would largely maintain its current ties with Brussels, in a charm offensive intended to unlock stalled negotiations with the EU.
In a major speech in Florence, Italy, on Friday, May promised to meet Britain’s existing EU budget commitments until 2020 and outlined new legal guarantees for the rights of around three million EU nationals living in Britain.
She also committed to maintaining Europe’s security, saying in a direct pitch to EU leaders: “We want to be your strongest friend and partner as the EU and UK thrive side by side.”
A fourth round of negotiations with the European Commission is due to start next week, with London keen to make progress on the terms of the divorce so that talks can move on to trade.
“While the UK’s departure from the EU is inevitably a difficult process, it is in all of our interests for our negotiations to succeed,” she said.
May said she wanted a transition period after Brexit in March
FLORENCE:
2019 of “around two years” during which “access to one another’s markets should continue on current terms” for Britain and the EU.
She also promised to honour Britain’s financial commitments for the remainder of the EU’s current budget plan.
Within hours, Moody’s Investors Service cut its long-term credit rating for Britain.
Moody’s dropped its grade by one notch, which reflects expectations Britain’s debt will “continue to rise” and worries that any UK-EU trade agreement “would not award the same access to the EU... that the UK currently enjoys”. AFP