David Davis hits back at Brussels saying Brexit trade talks will not be delayed after Michael Barnier attacked lack of progress on EU ‘divorce bill’
DAVID Davis has hit back at Brussels saying the Brexit trade talks will not be delayed after Michael Barnier attacked a lack of progress on the so-called “divorce bill”.
The Brexit Secretary gave an upbeat assessment despite the EU's chief negotiator saying the next round of negotiations would be held up by two months due to the wrangle.
It was reported this morning Mr Barnier had told a private meeting of ambassadors his team would not talk about trade or the UK's future relationship with Brussels until "sufficient progress" had been made on the exit payment, citizens' rights and the Northern Ireland border issue.
The EU had planned to assess whether the negotiations could move on to post-Brexit trade relations in October -but this could now slip back to December.
However the Department for Exiting the EU said the Government expected the next stage to begin in October as planned.
A spokesman said: "Negotiations to leave the EU are under way and we have already made good progress on a number of issues.
"As the secretary of state said, it is important that both sides demonstrate a dynamic and flexible approach to these negotiations.
"Government officials are working at pace and we are confident we will have made sufficient progress by October to advance the talks to the next phase.”
The spokesman added: "On the financial settlement, we have been clear that we recognise the UK has obligations to the EU and that the EU also has obligations to the UK."
Earlier today the European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva would not be drawn on what was said at the meeting with ambassadors.
MOST READ IN POLITICS:
At a press briefing in Brussels she said Mr Barnier had publicly acknowledged that "so far limited progress has been achieved in the negotiations" but EU officials were ready to work on the issues over the summer if the UK side provided further updates.
However one EU official involved in the Brexit talks said: "He said the likelihood of starting the future relationship talks in October appeared to be decreasing.”
And a second official said: "Mr Barnier expressed concerns that sufficient progress in October looked difficult now.
“Mainly because Britain has no position on finances, but also because they don't have positions on other issues as well.”
He added: "The more they drag on, the less time is left for second phase and special relationship they want."
But Ms Andreeva did say the European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker was committed to engaging with the UK.
She said: "President Juncker has asked, specifically, the task force on Article 50 to be ready every day throughout the coming weeks, throughout the month of August, to engage with our British counterparts should the UK wish to substantiate their position in some of the cases where it has not happened yet," she said.
"The commission stands ready, we are ready to work and I cannot, beyond that, speculate on any timetable because that will depend on the pace of the progress being made."