David Davis claimed that Brexit talks were progressing at “lightning speed” today as he urged the EU to open negotiations on issues such as trade.
The Brexit secretary was speaking to EU heads of state, who are expected to rule at a summit in Brussels today and tomorrow that insufficient progress has been made on Britain’s divorce settlement to begin talks about their future relations with the UK.
In an interview with European newspapers, Mr Davis took issue with Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, who denounced a “disturbing” deadlock in the negotiations. “We have already made a lot of progress, at lightning speed by comparison with EU’s habits,” said Mr Davis.
He said talks on the Irish border have gone as far as