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LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday fought to find a consensus on an acceptable Brexit plan for her ministers, her divided conservative party and the North Irish legislators who support her minority government.
PHOTO BY FILE: British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves Downing Street in London on October 10, 2018, in Britain. REUTERS / Simon Dawson / Photo File
Negotiations with the EU on Brexit have accelerated and became more positive last week, although significant hurdles remain to be overcome, Finance Minister Philip Hammond said.
"What has happened in the last 10 days is that there has been a measurable change in the pace," he told the BBC.
"But that should not overshadow the fact that we still have big disputes to resolve," Hammond said. "So, the process is much more positive this week – the stuff remains very difficult."
Less than six months from the date on which the UK must leave the European Union, its most important change in foreign and trade policy for more than forty years, May seeks to rally support at home on the details of a divorce agreement although it is unclear whether she can get the approval of Parliament.
The Irish "border" at the Irish border, which aims to avoid extensive checks at the border between the British province of Northern Ireland and Ireland, if the open border was not maintained by a new EU-UK post-Brexit trade partnership, is the biggest stumbling block.
The EU said progress was being made in the future management of the 500-kilometer long border, but diplomats in Brussels said the lifespan of such an urgent border solution was not enough. Was still not agreed. Negotiators also questioned whether this would also cover Northern Ireland or Great Britain.
"It would have to be over, short and I think, limited in time for it to be supported here," said Dominic Raab, Britain's minister of Brexit.
"What we can not do is see the United Kingdom locked in the back door to a customs union agreement that would leave us in an undefined legal vacuum – that would not leave the United States. EU, "he said Friday.
The EU says that a safety net must be "all the time" and not have a specific deadline. Negotiators are looking for creative wording to connect this circle.
SUMMIT OF HIGH CHALLENGES
They will continue throughout the weekend and diplomatic sources in Brussels are waiting for Raab to come Monday if an agreement is reached. EU advisers from the 27 EU Member States remaining in the EU after Brexit are also scheduled to meet in Brussels that day.
The bloc's national leaders meet on Wednesday for a high-stakes summit, hoping to declare a "breakthrough" in the divorce talks and announce another additional summit at Brexit to finalize the deal, including an offer of close relations with Great Britain.
Despite all the cautious positivity on the part of the EU, May's supporters in Northern North Ireland vehemently oppose any checks after Brexit between the province and the rest of Britain.
Unionist Democratic Party president Arlene Foster said May "could not in all conscience" agree to control goods imported into Northern Ireland from Britain after Brexit.
According to the May plan, the whole of the United Kingdom would create a customs "partnership" with the EU after the end of a transition period in December 2020 if the backstop were triggered. Some of May's ministers urged that this be limited in time.
"The Prime Minister would never accept an agreement that could trap the UK permanently," May's spokeswoman said Friday.
The Times newspaper reported that May could face further resignations from eurosceptic ministers from her cabinet unless she finds a way to ensure that the security system is not permanent.
In the worst case, Britain failing to agree on a divorce, London warned that the single electricity market shared between Northern Ireland and the Republic from Ireland could stop. Consumers may also no longer benefit from the protections they are used to when buying goods and services in the EU, he added.
Britain warned Friday that leaving the EU without an agreement would mean that drug makers will have to store experimental treatments in case of border delays. The professional qualifications of European countries can no longer be honored.
London has published more than 25 technical opinions covering issues ranging from consumer rights to the rail transport and horse transport sanctions policy abroad. He stated that he was working hard to mitigate the risks in these areas in case of non-agreement.
Additional reports by Kate Holton, Padraic Halpin and David Milliken in London, Gabriela Baczynska, Philip Blenkinsop and Alastair Macdonald in Brussels, written by Guy Faulconbridge and Gabriela Baczynska, edited by Mark Heinrich
