Under pressure British PM in Brexit meeting
BRITISH Prime Minister Theresa May discussed Brexit with her ministers yesterday, under pressure to rethink her plans from both some members of her Conservative Party and the EU.
A day before May heads to Brussels for a summit, a senior EU official again made clear that parts of May’s plan could not work and said the time was right to step up plans for Britain leaving the bloc without a deal.
With less than six months before Britain leaves the EU, Brexit talks have reached a stalemate over the so-called Irish backstop; a fall back plan to ensure there is no return to a hard border between Northern Ireland and EU-member Ireland. May told parliament on Monday she would not accept the EU’s proposal for such a backstop because, she claims, it could break up the United Kingdom.
On Tuesday, a German official repeated the EU’s line that the backstop needed to be legally watertight and without it there would be no Brexit deal. Germany’s European Affairs Minister Michael Roth offered this advice to May: “Take responsibility and be constructive.” May was to update her cabinet of top ministers on the Brexit negotiations later yesterday, aware that some have come under pressure from Conservative euro sceptic MPs to persuade her to change tack over her so-called Chequers plan.
May has so far shown little sign of moving away from the proposal for future ties hashed out at her country residence, and tried to make clear to MPs on Monday that the issue was now over the backstop – part of Britain’s withdrawal terms.
Talks with the EU reached a stalemate on Sunday, increasing the possibility of a no-deal Brexit, which, some companies say, could disrupt trade, delay the movement of goods and starve the world’s fifth largest economy of investment. EU and British officials say it is unlikely there will be an agreement on the backstop at this week’s summit, but both are hopeful progress can be made.
“Even if in this week’s debate we are not going to have any kind of deal, there is still time, there is still possibility to get a deal,” Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said in Luxembourg.
Meanwhile, fears are growing in the Netherlands, a major exporter to Britain and gateway to and from Europe through its ports, about the potential consequences of the lack of a Brexit deal.
British and Dutch authorities have warned there could be huge traffic jams approaching ports on both sides of the North Sea as truck drivers and customs officials adapt to Britain’s life outside the EU. Reuters