May letter triggers Brexit process
LONDON: British Prime Minister Theresa May last night gathered her senior ministers at Downing Street as the UK prepared for a ‘‘pivotal moment’’ in its journey to a future outside the European Union.
May earlier signed the letter to start the formal exit process and the historic document was to be handdelivered by a senior diplomat to EU chiefs in Brussels.
Shortly before the cabinet meeting, Chancellor Philip Hammond said the letter set the ‘‘right tone’’ and sent the ‘‘right signals’’ to European leaders about how the UK wanted to conduct the negotiations that would decide the country’s future.
After 12.30pm (12.30am today NZT), the premier informed MPs that Brexit was being triggered and, in Brussels, British ambassador to the EU Sir Tim Barrow delivered the document to European Council President Donald Tusk.
Once it has been accepted, Article 50 has been officially launched and starts a twoyear countdown to the UK leaving the EU.
Hammond said it was an ‘‘exciting time’’, telling the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: ‘‘This is a pivotal moment for Britain.’’
Sir Tim arrived at the European Council yesterday clutching a briefcase containing the Article 50 letter as cameras captured the historic moment.
Key EU figures agreed to enter into Brexit talks in a ‘‘positive spirit’’ during a series of phone calls with May earlier yesterday.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Tusk and European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker said the UK would remain a ‘‘close and committed ally’’.
Within 48 hours, the European Commission is expected to issue ‘‘draft negotiation guidelines’’, which will be sent to the 27 remaining states for consultation.
Their leaders will meet on April 29 at an extraordinary European Council summit to agree a mandate for chief negotiator Michel Barnier and clear the way for talks to begin in May.
The Scottish parliament on Tuesday backed a bid to hold a new independence referendum in 2018 or 2019, but the British government immediately rejected the proposal.
The standoff further complicates the United Kingdom’s political situation just as years of daunting negotiations on the terms of its exit from the European Union are about to begin.
The Brexit issue has strained ties between the UK’s four constituent parts because England and Wales voted to leave the EU while Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain.
The Scottish legislature in Edinburgh voted by a majority of 69 to 59 to give First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a mandate to formally seek permission from the British parliament in London to prepare for a referendum in late 2018 or early 2019.
‘‘The people of Scotland should have the right to choose between Brexit, possibly a very hard Brexit, or becoming an independent country able to chart our own course,’’ Sturgeon said earlier in the chamber.