AFP, Berlin :
European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker on Sunday urged Britain to “get your act together” on Brexit, as he rejected accusations that the EU had a hidden agenda of keeping Britain in the bloc.
“I find it unreasonable that part of the British public seems to think that it’s entirely up to the EU to present a solution for all future British problems,” Juncker told German newspaper Welt am Sonntag.
“My call is: get your act together. And tell us what you want. Our proposals have been on the table for months.”
Earlier this month, British Prime Minister Theresa May postponed a vote in the House of Commons on the withdrawal deal she struck with the EU in November, fearing a huge defeat as many of her own MPs oppose it.
She is seeking further clarifications from Brussels on arrangements relating to the Irish border, and has said the vote would take place the week of January 14.
It also means the parliamentary decision would come just weeks before Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29.
The main opposition Labour party has accused May of “running down the clock” to try to force MPs to back her deal rather than risk Britain leaving the EU with no arrangements in place.
“I get the impression that the majority of the British lawmakers deeply distrust the EU and Madame May,” said Juncker.
The European Commission president also rejected claims that Brussels was stalling to stop Britain from leaving.
“One insinuates that our aim is to keep Britain in the EU with all means possible. But that’s not our intention,” said Juncker.
“We only want clarity about the future relationships. And we respect the result of the referendum.”
The chances of Great Britain leaving the European Union are “50-50” if Parliament rejects Prime Minister Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement, U.K. International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said in a Sunday Times newspaper interview. “If we were not to vote for that, I’m not sure I would give it much more than 50-50,” Fox said in the interview.
Fox told his MP colleagues that it was a “matter of honor” to back May and he’d rather accept an agreement that falls short of the ideal than risk Brexit’s failure, according to the the report.
Fox also said he would like to see more EU concessions on the so-called Irish backstop, language in the deal meant to avoid the creation of a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Separately, the Times of London reported that crashing out of the EU without a deal would trigger a cut in taxes and interest rates and the return of quantitative easing, according to the newspaper’s annual survey of economists.
All 52 economists polled, including four prominent Brexiteers, agreed that a disorderly Brexit would require intervention from the Treasury and the Bank of England that would leave the nation with a larger deficit. Almost half — 42 percent-said there was at least a one-in-five chance Britain would leave without a deal.
