Too early to say if UK has made sufficient progress in Brexit talks - Irish PM

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Too early to say if UK has made sufficient progress in Brexit talks - Irish PM

 

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May welcomes Ireland's Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to Downing Street in London, September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Monday it was not possible to say that Britain had made sufficient progress to move onto the next phase of Brexit talks with the European Union, adding there was a "bit of a way to go yet".

 

"When it comes to making a recommendation as to whether sufficient progress has been made, it's too early to say.

That's a decision that will be made by the 27 prime ministers including me when we meet in Brussels in October," Varadkar said after a meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May in her Downing Street office.

 

"It's possible that between now and the decision point in October that may happen. I don't think at this stage it would be possible to say that sufficient progress has yet been made."

 

Varadkar said it was important that Britain had committed to not having any physical infrastructure on the border between the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland.

 

He also said neither he did not believe there would be any advantage in having another election in Northern Ireland to solve an impasse in the British province after a power-sharing coalition collapsed in January - but added that he did not favour a return to direct rule from London.

 

(Reporting by Michael Holden, editing by Andy Bruce)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-09-26

[dunroaming]

Well the Irish question has to be sorted out before progress can be made with the EU.  Also the commitment to the amount of money the UK is prepared to pay.  No wonder Barnier is frustrated with all this faffing about!

[dunroaming]

Back to square one then with Davis now saying that Britain will only pay up if Britain gets the deal it wants which means we are back to stalemate.  It does seem that the UK is reluctant to push ahead with Brexit when you have the chief negotiator going back on what the PM said last week.

 

Of course behind it all is the political posturing with the knives being sharpened every day.