'The delay is not on our side!' Tory MEP roasts Barnier for time-wasting in Brexit talks
DANIEL HANNAN lambasted EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier for time-wasting during Brexit talks.
Hannan grills Michel Barnier for wasting time on Brexit talks
The Tory MEP accused the chief negotiator of slowing down the process and purposely creating “delays”.
Speaking on Sky News ahead of the second phase of Brexit talks, Mr Hannan said Britain was ready and waiting for European Union negotiators.
Asked if the talks should proceed to the next stage, Mr Hannan replied: “I think they should.
“It’s pretty clear that Barnier keeps on saying the clock is ticking and we keep saying ‘fine, let’s speed up the process’.
It’s pretty clear that Barnier keeps on saying the clock is ticking and we keep saying 'fine, let’s speed up the process’
“The delay is not on our side. We’ve come up with all sorts of ways of breaking the deadlock on all of the issues that you’ve just heard described there.
“So I think they should. If they don’t, I think that will be a political decision from the Commission, I don’t think it’s because of a lack of detail on Ireland or citizens’ rights or indeed the financial settlement.
“We need to be prepared for that contingency, we need to be prepared for having a third country relationship to the EU, but on balance I think that it is more likely than not that there will be a deal.
“I think it should be a deal that’s mutually advantageous. We want the EU to succeed, we don’t want to leave in a way that damages them.
“These are our friends and our allies, they’re also our suppliers and our customers and we have a stake in their success.”
Speaking at a joint press conference with Brexit secretary David Davis on Thursday, Mr Barnier continued to demand that the UK is governed by the European Court of Justice.
Mr Barnier said that the role of the ECJ in the issue of citizens’ right is a “stumbling block”.
The EU chief negotiator said: "Our citizens will be able to invoke the rights as defined by the withdrawal agreement before UK courts.
"We agreed to guarantee for the citizens concerned that the UK will apply EU law concepts in a manner that is consistent with EU after Brexit.
Mrs May previously said membership of the ECJ, the EU's highest legal authority, was "not going to happen" after Brexit.