PM May rallies her party
Brexit pressures mount
MANCHESTER, United Kingdom, Oct 1, (AFP): British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative Party gathered on Sunday for its annual conference, dominated by questions about her leadership and splits on Brexit. Four months after losing her parliamentary majority in a June snap election, May’s grip on power remains fragile.
In Brussels, Brexit negotiations are moving painfully slowly, while at home, ministers still disagree on the shape of Britain’s future outside the European Union.
Ahead of her arrival in Manchester, northwest England, May acknowledged the “disappointing” election performance, but emphasised that she had a programme that she intended to see through, with housing set to be a conference focus.
“Yes, we have to get the best Brexit deal — but we must also take action here at home to make this a fairer place to live for ordinary working people,” she said. Commentators will be watching for signs of rebellion, however, with all eyes on Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
Authority
His decision to set out his own vision of a clean break with the EU, just days before May’s big Brexit speech in Florence, was widely viewed as a challenge to her authority.
“May needs to get through conference without further damage to her position,” said Simon Usherwood, a politics expert at the University of Surrey.
May included a number of concessions in her Florence speech, which helped unlock the Brexit talks, although likely not enough to move the negotiations on to trade later this month.
But her call for a two-year transition period, in which Britain will continue paying into the EU budget, failed to quell the in-fighting among her own cabinet.
It sparked a fresh war of words in the newspapers between allies of Johnson and finance minister Philip Hammond, who fears the economic damage of a sharp withdrawal.
In related news, the fight to host major EU agencies leaving London after Brexit reached a milestone Saturday as Brussels gave its assessment of individual bids, though it stopped short of ranking them.
One regulator has warned that the wrong choice could see a mass exodus of staff.
The European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, published its views on 19 candidates seeking to be the new home of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and eight bidding for the European Banking Authority (EBA).
Decision
Stressing the need for a timely decision on where the “two key regulatory agencies for the EU’s Single Market” — are to go, the Commission said that “their relocation is a direct consequence of the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union.”
The Commission did not provide a shortlist of bidders, but assessed them against six criteria agreed by the 27 EU members that will remain when Britain leaves the bloc.
These included accessibility, geographical spread, availability of schools and jobs for staff families and guarantees the agency will be able to start work as soon as Britain exits in 2019.
A final decision will be made in November when EU states hold a secret ballot.
The Commission said Saturday it hoped to see a “smooth and timely relocation” which would allow “continuity” of the agencies’ activities, including during any transitional period, with new premises being ready.
It said its assessment “respects the Member States’ decision that the criteria should be unweighted and does not provide a ranking or shortlist of any kind.” The two agencies were also consulted. The European Commission’s assessments are not binding, although EU leaders are expected to take its findings into account, and the decision will ultimately be deeply political.