EU leaders punish Theresa May for Brexit deadlock by axing talks on future trade relations

EU leaders in Brussels said a discussion with Theresa May on future trade will not take place tomorrow
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EU leaders today punished Theresa May for the impasse in Brexit talks by axing planned talks on future trade relations.

Officials in Brussels said the discussion that the Prime Minister has been keenly seeking will not take place tomorrow because of a breakdown in talks at the weekend.

Germany also turned up the heat on Mrs May, with Angela Merkel’s Europe minister demanding she “take responsibility” and saying the European Union would not be “blackmailed”. Michael Roth said Brexit would be “painful” and that a November summit planned to seal the deal could also be axed.

At home, the weekly Cabinet meeting overran by an hour as ministers held a discussion on Brexit.

Jeremy Hunt is siding with potential Cabinet rebels opposing a Brexit deal that would leave Britain “locked in” to the EU 
Getty Images

The Evening Standard has learned that Jeremy Hunt is siding with potential Cabinet rebels opposing a Brexit deal that would leave Britain “locked in” to the EU.

The Foreign Secretary gave Mrs May strong personal backing for taking a clear position during this morning’s Cabinet meeting.

But Mr Hunt is said to have made clear in private that he is against any agreement that would tie the country to a form of customs union with no clear way to leave in future.

Eyebrows were raised when the loyalist and former Remainer attended a pizza night hosted by Brexiteer Andrea Leadsom, the Commons Leader, in her office.

Andrea Leadsom hosted a Cabinet pizza night (Photo by Chris J Ratcliffe/Getty Images)
Getty Images

A third of the Cabinet turned up last night to polish off three large takeaway pizzas — with margherita, hot and spicy, and vegetarian toppings — served with crisps and dips and red and white wine.

This morning the Prime Minister moved to avoid a confrontation with her Cabinet by abandoning plans that could have kept Northern Ireland aligned with the EU for an indefinite period.

Mrs May’s Democratic Unionist Party allies said they could “paralyse” her Government if she fails to protect Northern Ireland’s position in the UK.

Mr Hunt is understood to have praised Mrs May for her position on the Irish backstop that she claims would threaten the integrity of the UK.

Justice Secretary David Gauke and Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley were among the first to leave the three-hour Cabinet meeting.

Mrs Leadsom, a key critic of the failed customs union backstop plan, smiled as she walked past the cameras. She told Sky News: “The Prime Minister is doing a very, very complicated job and I’m fully supporting her in getting that done.”

Mr Roth called on Mrs May to “take responsibility and be constructive” as he arrived for talks in Berlin.

Earlier he told the BBC that Brexit would be “painful” and suggested the November summit planned to seal a deal could be used to plan “a disorderly no-deal Brexit” instead.

He added: “We, the EU, are not going to allow ourselves to be blackmailed.”

A senior EU official said a summit discussion tomorrow on UK future trade was being axed because talks had faltered at the weekend.

And the bloc hardened its backstop stance, saying it must be “legally binding” with no end date.

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