Jean-Claude Juncker: Give Britain time for Brexit

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker today conceded that Britain should be given time before starting the process of pulling out of the EU.

Mr Juncker, who himself is facing criticism for presiding over the fracturing of the EU, has been pushing for the UK to swiftly trigger Article 50 to begin withdrawing.

“I would have preferred the UK presents us its letter of resignation, so to speak, as soon as possible, as I had thought that the British, especially those who wanted to leave the EU, would have prepared for this possibility,” he told French TV.

But he accepted that the UK government would need several months to fine tune its position on leaving and that there was no deadline for starting the Brexit talks.

Prime Minister Theresa May, who has told Mr Juncker that the UK would need time before Article 50 was implemented, was today visiting Northern Ireland to discuss Brexit, including what it will mean for the province’s border with Ireland.

The June 23 vote to quit the EU has raised questions over the future of the open border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, which will become Britain’s only land frontier with the bloc.

Northern Ireland voted to stay in the EU, with 56 per cent backing Remain.Mrs May stressed that Brexit “must work” for Northern Ireland, including in relation to the border, as well as the rest of the UK.

She was also set to meet the province’s deputy first minister Martin McGuinness, who has demanded a referendum on Northern Ireland splitting from the UK so that it can remain in the EU as part of a united Ireland.

But his call has been rejected by the British government.