THE BILL, PLEASE
PM May won’t rule out paying twice as much to break deadlock on leaving EU
tHeReSA May yesterday refused to rule out doubling the amount Britain will pay Brussels in order to break the deadlock over Brexit.
The Prime Minister failed three times to deny she had offered billions more to EU leaders after they declared “insufficient progress” had been made on the divorce bill.
Brussels said trade talks could not start but in a minor concession to the UK, the EU gave the “green light” to preparations for the second phase of Brexit negotiations.
However, the Brexit divorce bill remained a major sticking point.
Last night, there were fears May could be forced to agree to hand over £36billion to move on to the next stage.
Quizzed at the end of a two-day European Council summit in Brussels, May refused to deny she had told other EU leaders the UK could pay “many more billions” than what had been offered.
In a major concession to the united front being shown by 27 EU leaders, the PM pledged to go through Britain’s financial obligations “line by line” to give a clearer picture of how much she will be willing to pay in a Brexit divorce.
The move came at the European Council summit in Brussels after the PM pleaded with EU leaders to give the UK a Brexit deal she can “defend” to Leave and Remain voters. May warned of the “risks” they faced if they could not “work together”
to secure an agreement. And she vowed that Britain and Europe would enjoy a “deep” new relationship if the EU was willing to give ground.
May did indicate steps were being taken to deliver the clarity which other EU leaders have been demanding on liabilities which are estimated in Brussels at £53billion.
Her concession came as the EU27 agreed to begin internal scoping work on their position on trade, in preparation for a possible start in December to the second stage of formal negotiations with the UK.
The leaders took just 90 seconds to approve the move, with council president Donald Tusk tweeting: “Brexit conclusions adopted. Leaders green-light internal EU27 preparations for 2nd phase.”
But the EU27 noted that Britain has so far made no “firm and concrete commitment” to settle all of its obligations.
Money remains the big sticking block for EU leaders.
Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, an ally of May’s, said the EU27 need “more meat on the bone”, while Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaite said May needed to move “from words to real deeds”.
Asked whether she would deliver further details on the divorce bill in time to ensure a breakthrough at the next summit, May said: “What we are doing, as we look across the weeks coming up to the December Council, is looking at a range of issues. On the financial issue, we will be going line by line through those commitments.
“I’m positive and optimistic about where we can get to in relation to the future partnership that we want with the EU, because it is not only in the interests of the British people, it is in the interests of people across the remaining 27 members of the EU as well.”
German chancellor Angela Merkel threw May a lifeline by describing progress as “encouraging” and saying she saw no reason why there should not be a good outcome.
May acknowledged there was “some way to go” in divorce talks but said the two sides were “within touching distance” of a deal over the rights of EU nationals in the UK and Britons living on the continent.
She said: “Whatever happens, we want them and their families to stay.”