PM meeting with Guy Verhofstadt MEP: 24 September 2018
Prime Minister Theresa May held a meeting with Guy Verhofstadt MEP.
A Downing Street spokesperson said:
This afternoon, the Prime Minister met Guy Verhofstadt MEP in Downing Street.
The Prime Minister gave an update on the negotiations, and on the commitment she gave on Friday to guarantee the rights of the three million EU citizens in the UK in the unlikely event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal. She thanked Guy Verhofstadt for his efforts to engage Member States on the rights of British nationals living in the EU.
They discussed the two key outstanding issues in the negotiations: the future economic partnership and the Northern Ireland backstop. The Prime Minister underlined the need to ensure frictionless trade between the EU and the UK as part of the future relationship in order to find a solution to the Northern Ireland border and maintain the constitutional integrity of the UK. They both agreed that the best solution to the Northern Ireland border would be found through the future relationship.
The Prime Minister confirmed that the government would also bring forward further proposals on the Northern Ireland backstop.
They agreed on the need to resolve these ongoing issues in a timely fashion so that the agreements could be discussed and ratified by UK and European Parliaments.