EU's Barnier says not enough progress in Brexit talks

STRASBOURG, France: The EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said Tuesday that not enough progress had yet been made to unlock talks on a future trade deal between Britain and the bloc.
"Today we have not yet achieved sufficient progress to begin in full confidence the second phase of negotiations," Barnier told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
"There are still serious divergences, in particular on the financial settlement. We will not agree to pay at 27 what was decided at 28," he said, referring to the remaining 27 EU member states.
EU leaders are set to decide at a summit starting on Oct 19 whether enough has been agreed on the divorce to start discussing the future relationship including a trade deal, as Britain has demanded.
But the European Parliament, which will have a final veto on any deal for Britain's departure from the bloc in March 2019, will vote Tuesday on a resolution calling on EU leaders to postpone the decision.
The move comes despite a speech by British Prime Minister Theresa May in Italy last month offering concessions, which Barnier told MEPs had been "translated into negotiating positions" by her negotiating team led by Brexit minister David Davis.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker also said it was too soon to move on to the next phase.
"We first need to agree on the terms of the divorce and then we see if we can half-lovingly find each other again," Juncker told parliament.
He welcomed May's "conciliatory" tone but highlighted key differences.
"The negotiators made good progress on citizens' rights but the indispensable role of the European Court of Justice in guaranteeing those rights still needs to be agreed," he told MEPs.
And he warned that the detail of how much Britain should pay as its exit bill from the EU was still undecided. — AFP