EU leaders want Theresa May to give guarantees on the Irish border before they grant her the Brexit deal the prime minister is hoping for, according to the latest reports.
“We have very clear principles regarding the integrity of the single market and regarding precisely the Irish border,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters at the summit in Salzburg, adding: “We need a UK proposal precisely preserving this backstop in the framework of a withdrawal agreement.”
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar also warned that Dublin was gearing up for the talks to collapse without a deal if London refuses to budge. “We’re ready for that eventuality, should it occur. But I think we need to double our efforts over the next couple of weeks to make sure that we have a deal,” he told media.
The 27 EU leaders, apart from May, will meet over lunch in Salzburg today to discuss their strategy for reaching a Brexit deal ahead of a special summit in Brussels in mid-November.
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