MOMENT OF TRUTH AS EU EASE BORDER STAND
THE EU’S chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said he is ready to come forward with an “improved” proposal on the Irish border in an attempt break the Brexit deadlock.
After briefing foreign ministers in Brussels, he insisted the offer would fully respect the UK’S “territorial integrity” .
He said the summit of EU leaders on October 18, would be the “moment of truth” when it would become clear whether it was possible to reach a deal.
“It is then we shall see whether agreement we are hoping for is in our grasp,” he told a news conference.
The border has emerged as the main obstacle to an agreement ahead of the UK’S withdrawal in March.
The EU is insisting on a “backstop” proposal which would see Northern Ireland remain in the customs union in the event of the two sides failing to reach an agreement in order to avoid the return of a “hard border”.
However Mrs May has rejected the plan as unacceptable arguing it would effectively create a border in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Mr Barnier said he was working on a plan to “de-dramatise” the controls that would be necessary in the event of the backstop coming into play.
He added: “We are ready to improve this proposal. Work on the EU side is ongoing. We are clarifying which goods arriving in Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK would need to be checked and where, when and by whom these checks could be performed.”
He reminded the British, however, the checks were the result of their decision to leave not only the EU but also the single market and the customs union.
“What we need in the withdrawal agreement is a legally operational backstop which fulls respects the territorial integrity of the UK.
“It is a backstop that will only apply unless a better solution is found,” he said.
Raab A BRAVE groom says it would have been more fun having “bonking Boris Johnson” at his wedding than Prime Minister Theresa May.
Newlyweds Jason and Michelle Dight had just exchanged vows at the yacht haven in Cowes on the
Isle of Wight, when Mrs May arrived.
But Jason, 36, admitted some friends and family were less than impressed with the PM’S visit.
He said: “We don’t really follow politics but some of the others were saying ‘what do you want to talk to her for?’ Let’s just say there were mixed reviews.
“I voted to come out of the EU and I do like Boris Johnson, he’s quite a character. It would certainly have been fun if he had shown up.”
Hairdresser Michelle, 32, wasn’t so keen on Boris, who is currently being divorced by his wife after a string of affairs.
She said: “I don’t know much about politics, it was just nice to have the Prime Minister in our wedding album.”
Mrs May, who was on a private trip to the island with husband Philip, posed for the snaps with Jason and Michelle before continuing to Cowes town centre.
Michelle explained: “As she was coming up the jetty, we asked the security staff if she would pose for pictures with us.”
Jason added: ”She congratulated us both and gave us her best wishes.”