BREXIT BOOST as Merkel's deputy says EU must keep Britain as CLOSE as possible
THE European Union should aim to keep as close a relationship with Britain as possible after Brexit, German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said.
EU should aim to keep as close a relationship with Britain as possible after Brexit, says Gabriel
Germany, the EU's largest economy, is concerned about the likely financial costs of Brexit but has also stressed the need for a unified stance among member states in the divorce talks, warning Britain against trying to "cherry-pick" the bits of EU membership it would like to preserve.
"My personal point of view is: We should do everything, as far as this is politically justifiable, to keep the Britons as close as possible to Europe," Herr Gabriel told foreign reporters, without elaborating.
Sigmar Gabriel has also stressed the need for a unified stance among member states in talks
May: 'I want to achieve a red, white and blue Brexit'
Herr Gabriel, who is also the head of the Social Democrats (SPD), the junior partner of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives in Germany's ruling coalition, said that the Brexit negotiations must not be allowed to drag on too long.
We should do everything, as far as this is politically justifiable, to keep the Britons as close as possible to Europe
"This won't be easy. But above all, we must get this done quickly. The uncertainty is the biggest problem," Gabriel said.
Prime Minister Theresa May has said she will invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty that triggers the exit negotiations by the end of March 2017.
PM Theresa May has said she will invoke Article 50 by the end of March 2017
Frau Merkel repeated her view that access to the EU's single market of nearly 500 million people hinged on respect for the bloc's four basic freedoms – of movement of people, goods, services and financial market products.
Controlling immigration was a major issue for many of the 52 per cent of Britons who backed leaving the EU in the June referendum.