UK, EU fail to agree on Brexit talks start date
The formal State opening of British Parliament by Queen Elizabeth II is set to be delayed by a "few days" from the planned date of June 19 as embattled Prime Minister Theresa May struggled to form a minority government.
The opening is marked by the 91-year-old Queen's speech, traditionally read out by the monarch to set out the government’s legislative agenda for the year.
The event had already been scaled down as a result of the snap general election, with the Queen set to forego the traditional robes and finery.
In a briefing, the Prime Minister's official spokesperson declined to confirm that the Queen's Speech would still be held on June 19 as previously announced, saying that the new Leader of the Commons, Andrea Leadsom, will soon be releasing a statement on the date.
Earlier, David Davis, reappointed as Brexit secretary, had admitted that the Conservative party election campaign "went wrong" and some manifesto pledges would be watered down.
"We'll have to look at the Queen's Speech and what we have to get through. It has to be voted on in Parliament in a week's time; it's a matter of practicality. There may be things that we simply can't put in. That will happen. That will be going on as we speak. We will try to carry as much of the House with us as we can," he said.
The delay in the Parliament opening is believed to be mainly the result of ongoing talks between Ms May and the Democratic Unionist Party — whose 10 MPs are crucial to her new minority government.
The reason behind the delay would indicate that the Ms May is set to make changes to the Queen’s Speech.
Brussels, June 12: Top EU and British figures held "talks about talks" on Brexit Monday but failed to nail down a date for the start of negotiations amid the fallout from Britain's chaotic election, officials said.
The two-year negotiation process between EU Brexit chief Michel Barnier and Britain's Brexit minister David Davis had been due to formally start on June 19.
But that looks increasingly unlikely as Conservative British Prime Minister Theresa May fights for her political life after unexpectedly losing her majority in parliament.
In Brussels on We-dnesday Barnier instead met Olly Robbins, a senior official in Davis's ministry, and Britain's ambassador to the EU Tim Barrow to discuss arrangements for the talks following the election shock.
"They agreed to have further contact at technical level this week. As of yet, no date for opening the negotiations has been agreed," an EU official said on condition of anonymity.
"The EU stands ready to begin negotiations." The arrangements under discussion include dates and the sequencing of talks — the EU wants four-week cycles of negotiations, each covering one topic -once they do actually get started.