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UK Should Expect EU to Be 'Difficult Partner' During Brexit Talks - EU MP

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The UK government should expect that the work with EU parliament in terms of Brexit process would not be easy, European People’s Party (EPP) Chairman and German member of EU Parliament Manfred Weber said.

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MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The UK government should not expect the EU parliament to be an easy party to work with during the upcoming Brexit talks, as the parliament remains critical of UK Prime Minister Theresa May's vision of a "hard Brexit," European People’s Party (EPP) Chairman and German member of EU Parliament Manfred Weber said.

"I listen to [Brexit heads] and I ask myself: what is Brexit? You tell people you want [a free trade agreement and a partnership of universities] and you tell people Brexit is Brexit? Parliament will be a very difficult partner for the British side," Weber told The Guardian newspaper in an interview published on Wednesday.

Weber criticized May’s plan to replace Single Market membership with a free trade agreement with the bloc, branding it unclear and similar to the current trade arrangement the two sides share.

"I have even after this speech not a clear picture. She wants to leave the single market but on the other hand she wants a free trade agreement. That’s only another wording [for the same thing]," Weber stressed.

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The EU parliament will expect to be informed and updated on the "state of play" during the entirety of the two-year Brexit negotiation process, as it is the "job" of the parliament to act as an "independent party of the interest of 440 million west European," the parliamentarian added.

Weber has also called on the president of the EU parliament to invite May to participate in a debate with the legislative body about her proposals.

Last week, May laid out her government’s outline for a "hard Brexit," which detailed the the UK's leave from the Single Market. Instead, the nation will seek a free trade agreement with the bloc, in an effort to continue strong ties with the EU member states.

The United Kingdom is expected to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty by the end of March, which will mark the official start of the UK's exit from the European Union.

 

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