Ireland foreign minister hits out at Boris Johnson’s ‘very unhelpful’ Brexit approach
Ireland’s foreign minister Simon Coveney has labelled Boris Johnson’s approach to Brexit as “very unhelpful” just two days into the newly-appointed Prime Minister’s tenure.
Coveney said on Friday that Johnson appeared set on a collision course with the European Union that would prevent an orderly exit from the Bloc come 31 October.
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In his first speech as Prime Minister, Johnson warned the EU he was prepared to push through a no-deal Brexit if a suitable agreement could not be made by the current leave date.
Today, the new Tory leader ramped up preparations for such a scenario by pledging £300m in extra freight capacity.
However, the car industry also hit back, with the Society of Motor Manufactures and Traders saying a no-deal Brexit was an “existential threat to our industry” and would risk output.
In Johnson’s pitch to the EU on Thursday, he was adamant that the Irish border backstop would have to be struck out if there was to be an orderly exit.
Foreign minister Coveney has now cautioned Johnson that he will not get a deal with that kind of approach.
“He seems to have made a deliberate decision to set Britain on a collision course with the European Union and with Ireland in relation to the Brexit negotiations,” Coveney told reporters in Belfast after meeting Julian Smith, Britain’s Northern Ireland minister.
Meanwhile, Johnson has also accepted a meeting with German chancellor Angela Merkel, according to her spokeswoman.
Read more: Boris Jhnson ramps up no-deal Brexit plans with £300 freight capacity pledge
Germany’s Europe Minister, Michael Roth, told ZDF television: “My message to the new British prime minister is clear: ‘Boris, the election campaign is over. Calm yourself down. We should be fair with each other.”
“What do not help are new provocations. Instead, dialogue – one must be able to expect that from the leader of a friendly nation, one that is still a member of the European Union.”