The European Union is reassessing plans for a July 22 summit on post-Brexit ties with the UK after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s resignation.
BRUSSELS: The European Union said Monday it was “reassessing” with Britain plans for a July 22 summit on post-Brexit ties, after UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s resignation.
European Commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho said Brussels and London were looking into “the opportunity of still holding the summit… and we will take it from here”.
The two sides had announced plans last week for the Brussels summit, which was meant to be between Starmer and EU top officials Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa.
But Starmer’s decision to kickstart the handover to a successor has thrown that timetable into doubt.
Former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is favourite to be the next prime minister and could take office just ahead of July 22 if he faces no opponents.
Since coming to power in 2024, Starmer has looked to turn the page on the bad blood caused by Britain’s 2016 vote to quit the EU — in a referendum held exactly 10 years ago on Tuesday.
The two sides had been hoping to present several deals at the summit, namely on food and animal safety standards, a youth mobility scheme, and the linking of their emissions trading systems.
But discussions have been difficult on some of the issues.
EU-friendly Burnham has recently played down calls for Britain to rejoin the bloc, insisting that while Brexit has been damaging he does not want to “rerun” the bitter domestic arguments of the past decade.
In a new poll from the European Council on Foreign Relations, 57% of Britons surveyed said they believed it was “wrong” for the UK to leave the EU.
The poll said three-quarters of Britons now back having closer ties to the European Union.
