[ad_1]
UK Prime Minister Theresa May warned on Friday that the Brexit talks had stalled and called on EU leaders to come up with new proposals as negotiations between the two sides became increasingly acrimonious.
In front of two British flags on Downing Street, Ms May pledged to continue her negotiating position and said it was up to EU leaders to explain why her plan to withdraw from the EU would not work. "We now have to hear from the EU what the real issues are and what their alternatives are so that we can discuss them," said Ms May. "Until we do it, we can not progress."
The pound fell further against the dollar and the euro, as Ms. May said, adding to the losses incurred earlier in the day. The pound sterling is down 1.5% against the dollar and 1% against the euro at 1.1747 euro.
Ms. May's remarks were intended to demonstrate her strength before the Conservative Party conference later this month, when she will have to unite a political party deeply fractured by Brexit. The British Prime Minister has been severely criticized in the UK for the perceived humiliation of EU leaders, who yesterday called his Brexit plan "impractical" for the UK. European Council President Donald Tusk said that the remaining 27 EU members felt that the economic framework proposed by the United Kingdom "would not work".
"Yesterday, Donald Tusk said that our proposals would undermine the single market," said May. "He did not explain anything or make a counterproposal. We are in a dead end.
The UK's Brexit proposal, approved by the cabinet in July, may need to be changed, analysts say. With less than 200 days before the official departure of the US at the end of March 2019, EU leaders warned that time was running out. A final agreement should be reached by November to allow enough time for governments on both sides of the negotiations to ratify it.
Northern Ireland faces a major stalemate if Brexit talks collapse. The EU wants Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, to continue following a series of EU rules and that customs and regulatory controls be carried out between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. May said Friday that the idea of Northern Ireland being separated from the UK was "unacceptable". She added that her government will draw up an alternative plan but did not specify when. Ms May also assured that EU citizens living in the UK would have their rights protected even if no agreement with the bloc is reached.
Meanwhile, Ms. May is fighting for support at home. Less than two weeks away from the Conservative Party conference, Ms. May took advantage of the intervention to try to reinforce her references to her party's Brexit contingent. She reiterated that she would not "reverse the results of the referendum" and said that she was working "day and night" for an agreement that would allow the UK to leave the EU.
Write to Max Colchester at [email protected]
