We face a stormy summer over EU exit talks
BREXIT Secretary David Davis yesterday set the scene for a summer of “rows” with Brussels over the timetable of exit talks and settling citizens’ rights.
He said the UK would stick to its argument that future trade and other links with the European Union must be discussed alongside the settlement of any British “divorce” bill.
Chief EU Commission negotiator Michel Barnier has said there must be good progress on Britain’s exit fee, the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and Britons on the Continent, and the future border between Ireland, which is in the EU, and Northern Ireland before any other matters can be discussed. Mr Davis told ITV’s Peston on Sunday that Article 50 of the EU treaties, which Mrs May invoked in March to begin two years of Brexit talks, said that “you’ll decide what is now called the divorce arrangement, the separation, taking into account the ongoing relationship”.
But Mr Davis said: “How can you take into account the ongoing relationship which doesn’t exist yet?”
Britain wanted to get on with negotiating its “big, very ambitious free trade agreement” as soon as possible. He said Brussels was trying to put pressure on the UK by insisting on
dealing with “the most difficult bit, the funding and Northern Ireland, before we do anything else.
“How on earth do you resolve the issue of the border with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland unless you know what our general borders policy is, what the customs agreement is, what the free trade agreement is, whether you need to charge tariffs at the border or not?” Mr Davis asked.
“You can’t decide one without the other. It’s wholly illogical and we think the wrong interpretation of the treaty, so that’ll be the row of the summer.”
He was hopeful the two sides could quickly strike a deal on guaranteeing EU citizens’ rights in the UK and of Britons living in other European countries. But he objected to suggestions the UK courts could not rule on disputes concerning those rights.
He also insisted the Government must keep the option of leaving the EU without a deal if the terms on offer were unacceptable.
Last week’s leaked draft Labour manifesto suggested Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn would not leave without a deal. But Mr Davis said: “We argue a bad deal could be worse than no deal.”
The European Court of Justice will rule tomorrow on whether the EU’s 38 national and regional parliaments should be allowed to veto trade deals. It may affect any deal the UK strikes.