EU calls for ‘orderly’ Brexit at historic meeting sans UK

Many leaders across EU want to capitalise on Brexit for their own causes

Brussels, June 29: European Union leaders called for an orderly British withdrawal from the bloc to minimise instability as they pledged to learn lessons from the UK’s political earthquake and do better at serving their citizens.

As EU government chiefs took the historic step of meeting without one of the bloc’s members for the first time, they lamented the British decision to part ways, then began to lay plans for a new union minus its secondlargest economy.

They also insisted that any negotiations on Britain’s future relationship wouldn’t be started until it gave official notification of departure.

“There is a need to organise the withdrawal of the UK from the EU in an orderly fashion,” leaders of the 27 other nations will say in their final statement, according to a draft obtained by Bloomberg News.Whilethedecision to trigger secession talks lies with Britain, and they can wait until a new prime minister is in place, “it would be preferable to do this quickly so as to avoid entering into a prolonged period of uncertainty.”

Banksandthepoundborethe brunt of the market turmoil unleashed by the UK’s June 23 vote to quit the EU after more than four decades, an upset that triggered a political and economic earthquake that reverberated across Europe.

Companies are already cooling on the UK Vodafone Group said it will consider moving its headquarters unless the country negotiates continued access to the European Union’s single market. Siemens said it will freeze new power investment in the UK until it has clarity on relations with the rest of the EU.

After Cameron left the European stage amid talk of regret and disappointment, the EU leaders who continued to meet without him began to look ahead. Bloomberg