BRUSSELS, Oct. 21 (UPI) — U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May told European Union leaders at a summit in Brussels that England expects to be involved in security and other important decisions affecting the European continent, regardless of its presence in the E.U.
At a summit of European Union leaders, May told her European counterparts the United Kingdom plans to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty by March 2017, starting the two-year negotiation for exiting the European Union process, while pressing that Britain is not abandoning Europe by doing so.
“I’m here with a clear message,” May is reported to have said to other European Union leaders. “The UK is leaving the EU, but we will continue to play a full role until we leave, and we will be a strong and dependable partner after we have left. It’s in the interests of both the U.K. and the E.U. that we continue to work closely together, including at this summit.”
European leaders buried May’s address in the summit agenda, first addressing concerns about Syria, Russia and concerns about refugees fleeing the Middle East.
Some ministers of the British Parliament are also concerned they’ll be left out of decision-making for Brexit and want a voice in what they recognize as a consequential negotiation for the U.K.
May has said she does not need the Parliament’s blessing to start negotiations; however, members of Parliament say they expect to contribute to decisions being made as the United Kingdom pulls out of the continent-wide union.
“Ministers keep saying that they won’t offer a running commentary on the negotiations,” said Tim Boswell, chairman of the House of Lords EU committee. “What they offer instead, namely parliamentary scrutiny after the fact, is in reality not scrutiny at all — it could be no more than a rubber stamp. That is not good enough, given that these are the most important and complex negotiations the government has ever undertaken.”
