Salzburg summit ends: what happens next?
EU and UK deadlocked as critical summit comes to a close
Theresa May’s efforts to persuade EU leaders to back her Chequers plan for Brexit during a two-day summit in Salzburg appear to have failed.
Donald Tusk, the head of the European Council, has warned that the prime minister’s proposed economic partnership “will not work”, as it risks undermining the EU’s single market.
And although Tusk told reporters there were some “positive elements” in the UK’s blueprint, there is still no agreement on the Irish border.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The firm line from Downing Street, and one repeated by May at dinner last night, has been that the Chequers plan and the UK’s own proposal for an Irish backstop already represent big compromises, and that it is now time for Brussels to shift position.
May has said her plans represent the “only serious credible” way to avoid a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The Times reports that the EU27 has been split over whether to accept the bulk of Britain’s proposals. The newspaper says a group that includes Holland and Belgium view the Chequers plan as a “positive step” towards reaching a deal - but that France, Germany and the European Commission remain vehemently opposed.
“Summit after summit, the biggest obstacle remains what happens in Ireland after we leave the EU,” says the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg.
As she notes: “After Brexit, the border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the island becomes the line between the huge European trading club and a country that’s on the outside.”
What happens next?
The UK is still due to leave the EU on 29 March 2019.
Salzburg was an “informal” meeting rather than a full European Council summit, so there is no formal conclusion from the talks. Tusk has said that October will be the “moment of truth”. If next month’s talks are successful, a deal could be formalised in mid-November, he suggested.
Eventually one side - or more likely, both - “is going to have to blink to avoid no deal, and Downing Street is hoping that the PM has done enough to get Brussels to budge more”, says The Times’s Matt Chorley.
Since the EU has more power in the negotiations, “it’s often assumed that the UK will end up having to ditch its resistance”, says the BBC’s Kuenssberg. Yet in the run-up to the Tory conference, “rather than showing any flexibility, the UK is sticking with its position”, she continues.
All the same, with a rough date set for deal day, that position “might have to evolve”, Kuenssberg concludes.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'Elevating Earth Day into a national holiday is not radical — it's practical'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
UAW scores historic win in South at VW plant
Speed Read Volkswagen workers in Tennessee have voted to join the United Auto Workers union
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 22, 2024
Cartoons Monday's cartoons - dystopian laughs, WNBA salaries, and more
By The Week US Published
-
'Europe is now beginning to tackle its military to-do list'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Farewell to Theresa May: a PM consumed by Brexit
Talking Point Maidenhead MP standing down at next general election
By The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Stormont power-sharing in sight: 'good news' for Northern Ireland?
Talking Point Unionists vote to end two-year boycott after agreeing legislative package to address post-Brexit trading arrangements
By The Week UK Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
How Finland's tightening presidential race could affect future of Europe
Under the radar Country has key geostrategic position along Nato's longest border with an increasingly belligerent Russia
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published