Brexit to be a painful process – Michel Barnier

Some have created the illusion that Brexit will have no material impact on our lives and that it will be painless. This is not the case

It is wrong to try and make people believe that Brexit will be a painless process, according to chief Brexit negotiator for the European Commission, Michel Barnier,

“Some have created the illusion that Brexit will have no material impact on our lives and that it will be painless. This is not the case,” Barnier told reporters at a press conference this morning. Michel Barnier presented the European Commission’s negotiating objectives on Wednesday.

However, he added that the Commission will not try to “punish” the UK for leaving, according to a report from Politico. Making a financial settlement is a matter of “settling the account – nothing more, nothing less”.

Barnier called on the 27 member states to show unity and dispel uncertainty.

“Our shared objective is a successful negotiation ... firstly we need unity – united we can better defend the interests of the 27 member states,” Barnier said. “We have to dispel uncertainty. We need to spread certainty and legal certainty because, in certain respects, the UK withdrawing from the EU creates uncertainty for the citizens.”

Meanwhile, EUobserver reported that draft texts on the negotiating position of the EU state that the top priorities are citizen’s rights, avoiding a hard border in Northern Ireland and the UK’s financial bill.

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