'I'm not crazy!' Juncker says he could demand MORE than £40bn from Britain for Brexit
JEAN-CLAUDE Juncker today refused to rule out Brussels demanding more than £40 billion for its Brexit bill as he warned that there are still no guarantees of moving onto trade talks next month.
The EU Commission chief said he would have to be “crazy” to divulge what sum European leaders would be prepared to accept but revealed he will discuss the settlement with Theresa May on December 4.
And he appeared to make a slight verbal slip during his speech as he used the German word "rechnung" - literally meaning bill - rather than eurocrats' preferred terminology which is "financial settlement".
EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier has repeatedly chided the British press for referring to the mega-bucks demand as a “bill”, insisting it is not a punishment but a technical “settling of accounts”.
Mr Juncker made the remarks at a press conference in non-EU Switzerland alongside that country’s president, Doris Leuthard, who urged the bloc to get on with the negotiations to put an end to uncertainty.
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During a speech made in German he said that it was too early to tell if sufficient progress will be declared at next month’s EU summit but said that “intensive” negotiations are taking place.
He stressed that the issues of citizens' rights, the bill and Ireland need to be resolved before trade talks can begin and said: “The situation is not at the stage that I can say that we will move forward.”
Referring to his upcoming meeting with Mrs May, who is also set to meet EU Council president Donald Tusk, he added: “Then we will see if we can move forward or if we are stuck. I hope we will be able to move forward.”
Mr Juncker said: "The worst is behind us, but there has not been sufficient progress for me to say that we can enter the second phase of the talks about our relationship in the future. We'll see that within the next few days."
I’m not crazy enough to give an immediate answer to your question
Asked in English whether or not a rumoured improved offer of £40 billion (45 billion euros) by the British Government would be enough to move the divorce along, he declined to answer.
He replied: “I’m not crazy enough to give an immediate answer to your question. I will have a meeting with Theresa on the 4th of December and then all these things proposals will be submitted to our common meditation.”
British negotiators have been on a concerted drive to achieve a breakthrough in recent weeks, with ministers prepared to up their cash offer to the EU as long as Brussels accepts it is conditional on offering the UK a good trade deal.
Yesterday the head of an influential think tank said Britain’s chances of securing a Brexit breakthrough at next month’s crucial European summit are now as high as 70 per cent after EU officials were left impressed by “switched on” UK negotiators.
Charles Grant, boss of the pro-EU Centre for European Reform, said Brussels was bowled over by the “impressive” performance the PM gave when she met EU Council chief Donald Tusk last week.
And he predicted that European leaders will be prepared to accept Britain’s latest offer on the Brexit bill, thought to be around £36 billion, with the issue of Ireland more likely to hold up progress.
The remarks from a well connected think tank, which has a track record of predicting the outcomes of Brexit negotiating rounds, will cheer UK negotiators as they head into a crunch three week period.
Mr Grant said that now the main threat to the progress of the talks is the Irish situation, with Taioseach Leo Varadkar prepared to wield his veto unless he receives assurances about no return to a hard border.
