PRESIDENT of the European Council Donald Tusk has slapped down Theresa May and warned her that the stakes are too high to let “emotions get out of hand” after she accused Brussels of seeking to interfere in the General Election.
He said Brexit negotiations will “become impossible” if the UK and the EU become embroiled in arguments before the formal talks have even begun.
Tusk called for discretion, moderation and goodwill to help ease tensions ahead of Britain’s exit.
“These negotiations are difficult enough as they are,” he said. “If we start arguing before they even begin they will become impossible. The stakes are too high to let our emotions get out of hand because at stake are the daily lives and interests of millions of people on both sides of the Channel. We must keep in mind that in order to succeed we need today discretion, moderation, mutual respect and a maximum of goodwill.”
May sent shock waves through Brussels with a dramatic Downing Street statement on Wednesday accusing unnamed “European politicians and officials” of issuing threats deliberately timed to affect the June 8 vote.
European Parliament president Antonio Tajani rejected the Prime Minister’s claim and a spokesman for European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said his office was “too busy” to meddle in the election.
“We are not seeking to influence the result in the UK,” said Tajani. “It is better to have an interlocutor who is not constantly looking for votes because they have had the election, in order to work towards a good solution.
“If you have an election campaign, the rhetoric gets sharper and more robust. I don’t think there is any question of influencing the campaign.”
Earlier, Juncker’s spokesman Margaritis Schinas brushed off May’s comments, telling reporters: “People get excited whenever we have elections. This election in the United Kingdom is mainly about Brexit. But we here in Brussels, we are very busy, rather busy, with our policy work. We have too much to do on our plate. So, in a nutshell, we are very busy. And we will not Brexitise our work.”
The row over alleged Brussels interference in the election blew up after a German newspaper published an apparently well-briefed account of May’s meeting with Juncker and Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier in Downing Street last week, which was said to have ended with the Commission president saying he was “10 times more sceptical” of the likelihood of a successful Brexit.
Speaking outside No 10 on Wednesday, the PM said: “The events of the last few days have shown that, whatever our wishes and however reasonable the positions of Europe’s other leaders, there are some in Brussels who do not want these talks to succeed, who do not want Britain to prosper. Britain’s negotiating position in Europe has been misrepresented in the continental press. The European Commission’s negotiating stance has hardened.
“Threats against Britain have been issued by European politicians and officials. All of these acts have been deliberately timed to affect the result of the General Election that will take place on June 8.”
Norwegian prime minister Erna Solberg said Brexit was “challenging” not only for the UK and EU but also for her country, whose biggest trading partner is Britain.
She said: “Norway, as a member of the internal market through the EEA [European Economic Area], will be directly affected by the UK’s departure from the union. We are of course very concerned about how the arrangements will be in the future between the EU and the UK..
“We believe it is possible to find good arrangements in the future.”
Reports yesterday also suggested that Spain could use its veto in Brexit negotiations to target “unjustified privileges” in Gibraltar. A leaked Spanish government document took aim at lower tax rules on the Rock, where corporation tax is just 10 per cent compared to 25 per cent in Spain.
It suggested that Spain would not accept a “relationship incompatible with the Spanish position on its territorial claim” to Gibraltar.
May has insisted that Gibraltar’s status will not be up for discussion during the exit talks.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel