03 October 2017

European Parliament: Brexit: tangible progress still needed on withdrawal terms

The government leaders of the EU 27 member states should postpone their assessment of Brexit on 20 October as “sufficient progress” has not been made on three key aims unless the fifth round of talks on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU delivers a major breakthrough, says a resolution passed  by 557 votes to 92, with 29 abstentions, on Tuesday.

Although Parliament welcomes the clarifications by Prime Minister May in her recent speech in Florence, MEPs expect the UK government to table, without delay, specific proposals to:

• safeguard the full set of rights that 4.5 million EU and UK citizens currently enjoy,
• honour the UK’s financial obligations to the EU in full,
• resolve the Republic of Ireland/Northern Ireland border issue, in full compliance with the Good Friday Agreement.

An additional condition for concluding the first phase of negotiations is a guarantee that EU law will be respected until the UK’s official withdrawal from the EU.

Full press release

Speech by Michel Barnier at the Plenary Session of the European Parliament on the state of play of negotiations with the United Kingdom

[...]You say it yourself in your draft resolution: Prime Minister Theresa May made some openings in her Florence speech ten days ago.

The UK negotiation team began last week translating these openings into concrete proposals and clarified a number of issues.

In that way, we could advance, particularly on one of our priorities, which is the protection of the rights of citizens.

We are also converging on the common principles which will guide our response to the questions on the unique situation of Ireland.

Alongside these positive points, there are still serious divergences, in particular on the financial settlement.

On this point: we simply expect commitments taken at 28 to be honoured at 28. It is as simple as that: that taxpayers and the 27 Member States do not have to pay for the consequences of a decision they did not make.  No more, no less.

There are also points of divergence on how to guarantee citizens' rights.

We understand and share the worry of the 4.5 million British and European citizens who want to continue living and working like they did before Brexit.

This worry, which you refer to in your resolution, has been worsened by certain discriminatory measures taken by the British authorities. We are worried about this.

To effectively guarantee these rights, we need:

1. The withdrawal agreement to have direct effect to allow British authorities and judges to rely directly on the withdrawal agreement. Without direct effect, these rights could be changed over time.

2. A coherent interpretation of the agreement on both sides of the Chanel, which only the European Court of Justice can assure.

Beyond these questions on governance, we are also waiting for guarantees from the United Kingdom on family reunification and the exportation of social benefits acquired in the United Kingdom.

On Ireland, both the European Union and the United Kingdom recognise that Ireland is in a unique situation and that any solution must be fully informed by the particular circumstances on the island.

As I have said a few times before, these solutions must respect the integrity of the Union's legal order, as well as the Good Friday Agreement in all its dimensions.

At this stage, it is particularly important to ensure the concrete modalities of continuing the numerous North-South cooperation schemes provided for in this agreement and the continuation of the Common Travel Area, which requires precise and detailed work, and which we are engaging in constructively with the British side.

As you rightly pointed out in your draft resolution, we have not yet made the "sufficient progress" today to start the second phase of the negotiations with confidence. Firstly, on a possible transitional period, under conditions clearly defined by the European Council. Then on the framework of our future relationship. [...]

Full speech

Speech by President Juncker at the Plenary Session of the European Parliament on the state of play of negotiations with the United Kingdom

[...]The Prime Minister's speech in Florence was conciliatory. But speeches are not negotiating positions. And as Michel Barnier, the Commission's excellent Chief Negotiator, said last week: work still remains to be done.

We have not yet made the sufficient progress needed.

The negotiators made good progress on citizens' rights but the indispensable role of the European Court of Justice in guaranteeing those rights still needs to be agreed.

I am pleased that Prime Minister May and her team recognise that the UK has financial obligations which it must respect. The devil will be, as always, in the detail. But the taxpayers of the EU27 should not pay for the British decision.

And when it comes to Ireland, we can only talk of solutions that fully respect EU law and the Good Friday Agreement.

I will not go into any more detail here as negotiations continue next week and Michel will complete what I was just saying.

For those that think that the UK should just "go over Michel Barnier's head", I remind them that the Commission has been appointed by the 27 Member States and my choice of Michel Barnier had been welcomed by them. He acts on their behalf on the basis of clear negotiating mandates.

And he will report to them at the next European Council. Until now I cannot say that we are ready to enter the second phase of the negotiations. [...]

Full speech

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